# Appendix — DeCoteau v. District County Court for Tenth Judicial Dist. > Briefs, arguments, decisions, and more. URL: https://www.frixlaw.com/law-library/documents/brief%3Amicro_IA40385003_0055%3A03 ## Record - **Collection:** Supreme Court brief - **Document type:** Appendix - **Published:** January 1, 1975 - **Citation:** 420 U.S. 425 ## Text I APPENDIX FOR RESPONDENT MICK IN THI be Supreme Court of the United States OCTOBER TERM. 1974 No. 73-1145 In the matter of the APPLICATION OF CHERYL SPIDER DECOTEAL, natural mother and next trend. and ehalt of ROBERT LEE FI \THER and HERBER ) JOHN SPIDER tor WRIT ot HABEAS CORPUS. [HE DISTRICT COUNTY COURT TOR Ttit LE NIH JUDICIAL DISTRICT KERMIT AL. SANDI Attorney General State of South Daukot Suite A 304 Capit LA Pierre. South Dukota 5 WALTER Wo ANDRI Assistant Attorney General State Capitol Building Pierre, South Dakota 5750] LOM ID. TOBIN Special Assistant Attorney Gren > Main Street Winner. South Dakota 57580) Letter from E. F. Best, Assistant Commissioner of the General Land Office to Commissioner of Indian Affairs, Aug. 5, 1897 Affidavit of David Johnson and William Wakana, Members of the Sisseton-Wahpeton Bands of Sioux Indians to Commissioner of Indian Affairs, Oct. 4, 1901 .....24+e+s+-e6-s sees Affidavit of Henry S. Morris, United States Special aguas to Commissioner of Indian Affairs, Sept. 30, 1902 Letter from W. A. Jones, Commissioner of Indian Affairs to Sen. A. B. Kittridge, Nov. 18, 1902. ....+..-s. ae ee ee € & Letter from Charles Burke, Chairman of the House Committee on Indian Affairs to Commissioner of Indian Affairs, Feb. 10, ee a ae a oe oe a a a i oe ce ee ee ee ee ee a ee a Letter F. H. Abbott, Commissioner of Indian Affairs to Sanford E. Allen, Superintendent of Sisseton School, Gee. She BGP ec ces ese eee e eee eees Letter from William R. Layne, Acting Chief of Land Division to Sanford E. Allen, Superintendent of Sisseton School, Geen Be Geer ee 6 8 eet te eee Oe 8 eS oO 8 ee 8 Letter from E. B. Meritt, Assistant Commissioner of Indian Affairs to Re. Royal C. Johnson, Nov. 13, 1918 .... ° Letter from Charles Burke, Commissioner of Indian Affairs to Rep. Royal C. Johnson, Aug. 24, 1918. . ... «6+ «© «© w© «© Letter from D. W. Diggs to John W. Noble, Secretary of Interior, GUGGE Be Demme cece eet woe ete etl hehe) eoeoeeee Resolutions of the Convention of Eight Counties, to “take Action Relative to the Opening of the Sisseton Indian Reservation,” May 1, 1889...... . .« « « « seve The Minneapolis Tribune, May 22, 1889. Letter from D. W. Diggs to John W. Noble, Secretary of Zatesiog, May 13, 1008. «© «es seeeeeveeses . Letter from Commissioner of Indian Affairs to Secretary of Interior, June 21. 1889... + +s-eseseere cess ° * Letter from T. J. Morgan, Commissioner of Indian Affairs to Secretary of Interior, Aug. 13, 1889. ..... . Letter from T. J. Morgan, Commissioner of Indian Affairs to Secretary of Interior, Aug. 13, 1889. . . . «© « «+ e+ we we ws Letter from T. J. Morgan, Commissioner of Indian Affairs to Secretary of Interior, Nov. 12, 1889 ....++.-s . Letter from Department of English, University of South Dakota to Walter W. Andre, Assistant Attorney General of South Dakota, July °?, 1974... «+ «+ «++ + © © © e© ew Letter from E.A. Hitchcock, Secretary of the Interior to Sen. John M. Thurston, Chairman, Committee on Indian Affairs, March 10, 1900 Letter from Marion R. Smyser, Professor of Law, University of South Dakota, School of Law, to Tom D. Tobin, Attorney at Law, August 23, 1974 HL? 7) 71125--1897. At DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR . BNFRAL LAND OFFIOC#A Y Wasuinoton, D. C., Z~ 1897. scene over rae - 4 VERSO EM OK CAR CRNRRLA LAD OPE The Commissioner of Indian Affairs, Sir: Referring to your letter of July 27, 1897, Land = 29166- 1897, inquiring as to the status of lote 1 ana 2 Sec. 3 T. 124 N. R. 51 W., former Sisseton ani Wahpeton Reservation, South Dakotag I have to state that the records of this office show that lot 1 was patented to Christina Belle Bailey, ana iot 2 to Millie M, Bailey, July 22, 1889 - Recorded in Vol. 3 pp- 344 and 357. > These patents were sent to your office July 25, 188°. AMeewstak Commissioner. t ’ ' - . — ; x. f . - * wut’, _ Asie tech y ee ‘ ~e * : “ - ‘ ja . y: v i ° ! "ee ° 39 awe 3.3 vw Ave . 41 - } ite wat ? \ SS. so oe iw . - =’ ? ’ t , wut “Ss i 1 1 Ie ae bd 4 ~_— 2 bt, 6 Ce 4 ™ ter & te ?%e ae - : -— Sk BG 2 es In?) ly uf Vv ve - > oe aeons vy In Lite ee OA k = e 2 j 1 4 ‘ ro i . “ . tlie ¢ 3.8.1 /4 of Settiva id, Tre We) * ae" » vG % ’ . i ota bein Resssvttl ou, ia 4 si24 4 oe wit » -~ sae Lawie Gi! 3. L/i we Sts BH AIe Dew bd wis oo Jee.2.st9 2 te . tug 6 Btw tins “2.23 00 Santes KesosV¥itiws 85 wie B82i0 o: is toms, We ¥ avtiar wv? Publis Waret os, eesif?o; «4 Boome Ac INSP S2-t4 SF Belisaset, “AT Th .t Cee encw the 3197 Miitis Ws st.s te ce tus sels living hat: of i? Wiatusk Ti.2t Qe 238° J.acush« ws AWeF asec ss wi thse S1stste ta? Senactem tome@s of Sleug AnChins, uf aever seal sO down ey Sis otun 40° Wasavion In@izn Kesccvetivea tu & if Sete ° Ws wis do Jaewile wot o03 Ses ei¥szelims & siswet bb te , i~ ! Bw. > ies, ‘ > Gs rw eis vw i wl as | iC wt Lisiw ania 4, 7 > i afloat We 7 wis tle fIws two 52 si vi ys i ileteuntes the wils of ons Jv rir, : ifs? with 3:+i seine | te ts Fs 3 at Fi’ eet | putt “h kott, Ure Loavstss? of fuv 279.3% 1 fy wo teins 9 thee free ths povarmacnt , wit thas tie ote Jones wiuts “vs 39.2 oe Thrt * eee” iat s Zs. star wt wer dor VS 310° Biase 9 « Coetog WUS™ OA 1592? wivrgorepetnt wie Che’ th ths st+42 of Vuasset: in the eeer sea, tof «683 843 Sniv este ay, > Livive 22 3b? Meatasks, * oil? ear, Dae LA het 4Eh oo cee ene we £ £9 2S 9 oo codec 2 00 ob eeeSe $0 ceesecsoosesete fs { Millec. Waka x | Sudsevised anti ewees eo aelers Os bibs Oo Pte w? Os twwts? ‘ A pet Laul Lh. 4 C4972 .....- $ot¢4o0 Pat ity, Lo hah } ! ‘ 1.6000 566 600 = / ietaiectae iter, go’ Sed. 2 Stats of Seth Daexota) (ss. County of Roberts ( 7 we sa om + . Henry S. Korris, being duly sworn, doth depose and say that he isa Fesident of the City of Sisseton, County of Roberts in the State of South J Rapese’, and has veen. for tae Past o4x years. That in the seer (1870, es *. _enila eo “moved mith, his parente to tne ‘Gogangaa Kission which is located 2 the ze iesqton “Agency within the fo mer Lake, Traverse ,Ind inn reserve- sien: in centh, Dakota. That during, all of ee rears -inte ryene ing from. seve ete “+s Ban 7 1870. to _189l, this. affiant continued to Live.at _ the said Goodwiil Nissicn - ovith the exception of such time or times ashe was away attending school, - Sop - That since the year I89I and up to the present time, he has , ‘been® a located, fire at Brownsvalley, Minnesota, for & few months, then at Wanet, South Dake ta as clerk of. the Cireuit: Court fer. the period of four’ - *. years and sind. that at Sisseton, South Dakota. That the first naned piace rehesi* j Brownsval ley Minnesota, 4 ie. located | on ytne west t tline,of | the state 2 pan ngogate ant within oat le of tthe boundry ,line of tg seid" ‘Lake Tra-, ‘lyerae’ indian Fesgrvation., That ‘ee naie: termes of, 4 Sa Wa former oe 220g seat yor Roverts. County *” South Dakota, in, vahich | tye. dereer part of* the Tormer lane Traverse Indian-reservation. cigplocated. 2st .. the said — ong awe 4 €. gtowmn of Sisseton is situated L, Wigbin the former Lake Traverse, Ind‘an -seryation and about eignt miles distant from the Sisseton Agency. 7 That - ey... reason of these facts, tm said affiant during all of these years been in- _timately acquainted with the Indians sooty wren the. seid. Lake revarge Indian Feservation. | That the anid effient g peace + the Indian _dangnace as. -Tluently as. he speaks the Pnglish. 4 ode ti ase Cote - * cr ey Affiest Surtner deposes and says, trmt during the year Ieel, as al United States special agent ,he was engaged in the allotment of lands 9.55 the said Indians residing at the said Sisseton Agency and within the, ., . former Lake "raverse Indian reservation. That, a8 such United States special agent, this affiant made allotment in the said year among others to one J Ko zi pe aid his fanily as more fully appears vpon the allotment sheet mumber 73 of the allotment roJl which was returned by this affiant te the hnoncrehle commissicner «cf the Ind‘an affairs. “hat the number of the ssid 3 Ko gi pe on the suid wilotment roll I5i2 and thet toe nenes of tre fenilv ,of the said Ko zi pe and the descriptions of-the lands allotted to him end to his family are asffollows ': to-Ko-zi pe allotment # ISI2 the MWof Sec. -3,;Twp. 125; R.°5I. To Ocan ix to pa na-allotment #. -I3I3, a son of the siad Yo Zi*pe’ bet ireneously* marked. daighter ‘upon’ the “said-‘allotment«roll ithe” N 4 of the ER ¢ and the’z 4 of’ the KW #*Sec.° 4, Twp. 125; R. 5r. To’ ui ye (t223 Win # 1314 on the dlictment rolX' wife of sald Ko zi pe tie SE F Sec. 34, Twp. 126, R. 5I. To A ki ta pe win # I3IS, a-daughter of diars 7 seid Ro si pe’ ‘the SE. } Sec: 33 Twp. 126, R2 ST‘ ana toa ko ce yu he na #%5I0 oi on ani ‘ellotniat roll « son of said Ko Zi ‘pe’, the’ 4 of the rE’ © fan ‘the W 48% 4 Sec. 3, Twp. 125, R:°ST, Wall of which will more fully peek i reference being had to the allotment: rolls on file in the office of ‘the honorable commissioner of Indian affairs. That the said Ko zi pe was ‘pieced upon the said roll and given the said allotment of lands by yey ‘reason of “the tact “that an investigation ‘made by this affiant as ''nited rk ‘Speciad age i"ghowed ‘hin ts be a , néiiie r of ‘the Shiiecton hen wha sSioux. Indians ssitaze ‘find nos ath ral biiente! at. any. tothet “Indian ‘agency. fa was éntitled to enrolinent “at thet Sisgeton “Indian agendy aia’ aiso *"" w veensn of hs fi petition signed by Adari Litt lefhunder and other Indians members of the Sisseton and Wahpeten Rand of Indians and located at the Sisseton Agency, Which said petition was filed wi a tne paid &11lo trent. roll as appendix # 2. That when the . investigation referred to herein was completed, and tne said Ko 21 pe appeared before titis-affiant for tne pur- pose of selecting his lands for allotment, he appeared with one Adam “Lattlethunder already herein referred to, and in reply’to the question vet this affiant stated that his name was Ko 21 pe or Xa ke wa xte ate or Ma to hna xkin yan and that the said Indian was accordingly enrolled under the name of Ko zi pe“tnat the Indian name Ma to hna xkin yan being smat-d tount * ted means Crazy Rear and that t e nave as first given herein te Ko zi pe. 4 3. was given by the said Indians as an attempted pronounciation of the words Crazy Bear, but was not at thet time so understood by this affiant. Affiarg further deposes and says that the Indian and his fauily to whom the above described allotments were. made and who was enrolled in the said allotment re Ped sy be wa: he Ind tah cnokireaiiting ‘iwerSisseton ~aponggne oiea and pei ‘deacribed Yanas ana known as Creasy Rear ore: ‘to hna wate yan’ 1FBne Baie and identical person. Affiant “further deposes and says that yo the best of his knowledge and recollection no other Indian or In- Gane over selected the above described lands or asked for thempaid lands to' be allotted to them. Affiant furtner deposes and says that the investi- gation above referred to was made because of the fact that the said Ko zi pe or Crazy Bear Agencies in Prtn Dakota and had not immediately pricr to I@9I been a resident at the Sisseton Indian Agency, and as had some time prior to I89I been residing at other toils affiant now remembers was: not: enrolled upon the payment reid as prepared by tre Indian agent wii iicKietex and special agent S. H. Elrod. Affiant further deposes and : ohne imactdre daworn’tdaborelin/are-aiiimat tere pfitite om poreemaa: Weace as “not natters(except as sbeststes etated) indwieaee and recollection and are which are ‘based on infonmtion and velief. Subscribed and sworn to: before me this 30 "anhington, November I8, 1902. Hon. A.P. Kittriava, United States Senate, Yasinzgton, D.C. Sir: caferring to your communication, iated Angunt 22, 1908, in which you metas that the clain 77 mare that cersain desribed lands in the former Sisneton renervation should ve releived from Indians allotnent on the ground that the allottae had another tract of land, and to offine letter of Se,term>er 12, 1902, in reply thereto, you are aAvised that thin office is now 1" ree-ipt of a conmninioat ion fron Agents o.R, Jackson of the Sisne- ton Ag-ney, dated Yovem-ar 8, 1902, in m ton he trananita the “aviaenon talen by him covering the following «allotments, No. I5I2, Kostpa, the "AW. 44 of See, 3, T. 125, R. SI; No. ISIS, O-cnn-ta-te-g0-win, the Wot the NW 4 and the W2 of the NW /4 of See 4, 7. 125, "R.SI 7; No. 1814, Ni-ye wa-nte-win, the 99/4 of Sea, 34, T. 126, MN. of R. SI ¥.; No. ISIS. a-ki- ta-pi-7in, the SW/4 of See, 33, 7. 198, ". of R. SI, ¥.; Mo. 1316, Ma-Ko- o#-yu-he-na, the W2 of the WWJ 4 am the W2 of the SW 4, seo. 3, T1268, WN. of R. 50 ¥, According to the sehednle on file in this offios allottse, No. I514 in the wife of No. ISI2, Yon. ISIS and ISIS are the Amghters and No, ISI6— is the son of No. I5I2. At the hearing »efore the Agent it wan contendad »y the parties attacking the sllotrents that Sherex these allotnenta rere sebected by and a Crow Creek Indian, who, with six children, 7a*8 allotted on the Crow Creek resrevation. for Hin-han-ko-yag-mani, or Yalks with Owl, It is contended hy the allottes, and supported by the evidence among otrer witnessen, of S: ects? Al otting Agent, 4.8. Morris, who mate the allotments, *nat “o-ri-pi 19 an [nAtan, named in Pngliesh, Crazy ‘ear, or in Intian, Ma-to-1°9-skin-van, Thee* ap.eara to he no reasonable aouht that Crary Rear was the Ine ddan i “1, tad 9 +a uliatted, i is Srrther mnaantained hy thove attneking the allotments, that Crazy Bear wan not «ntitled to allotment, as he helonge4 to *he hostiles, ~ho were ansigned to the Devil's Lake reservation, in Worth Dakota. Regarding this contention, Special Alloting Agent Morris, awearn that in 1891 he made allotments to the Siaseton Indians, and among others, to Ko-zi-pi «nt he« femily, a8 more fully al peare on allotment sheet Yo.75, He describes the allotments ani states that No. ISIS wan made to 0-can-ku- to-pa-win. a son of Xo-zi-pi, ‘ut erroneously marfed * cdaughter® on said schedule; that said Ko-si-pil , was placed upon the roll anit given allot- ments by reason of the fact that an investigation wan made by him an Se- cial Alicting Agent showed Ko-zi-—pi to be a member of the Sisseton ant Wahpeton, Band, of Sioux Indians; that he had no other allotments at any other Indian Agency, «11 wan entitled to enboellment at the Sieseton Agency. and also by reason of a petition signed by Adam Little Thunder, which pe- tition wan Tile® with said allotment achedule as an aprendix, that when the investigation wan completed Ko-si-pi appeared hefore the affiant for the purpose of selecting his land, that he appeardd with Adan Little Thmn- der afd stated that >is name wan Ko-2i-pi, or Na-ke-wa-xta-xte or Ma-to- hna-xkin-van, «nd thet said Indian was enrolled -mier the name of Ko-ri-pi. the nam of Ma-to—hia-xkin-yan, meaning Cragy Sear, and apet-et — an attempted pronunciation vy the Indian of Creasy Sear. The petition referred to ia on file in this offices, It ia signed by J.%. Brown, ani twenty seven other mambers of the trihe, who state that they know Ko-zi-p1 Sa-kea-waste-ate to he a Sinseton and Wahoston Indien by blood and worthy to receive am ellotment on the Lake fearvation, they therefores petition that allotments be made him and femily. To thir in ardded a note * 4 in total) and on ‘orn since the shove wan written’. On this atetement, and S.-cial Alloting Agent Morris's report, the allotments of Ko-7i-pi ani the four mem>ers of hie family “ere apyroved. It has slways ‘een fount impossible to strictly draw the line hetreen the loyal memhers of the Sieneton and Sahp-ton Barvia ani those who were either hostile or elne, through fear or other ‘nauses, fled with the horpile at the time of the outhreak, It in well Known that some of the Initanns up- on the Siaseton ani Sshneton reservation, wera either actively dinloval —. 7 or else acoconmpamied the hostiles. Two reservations rere provided for these bands, one at Sisseton an4 one et Devil's Lake the latter heing for the hostile Indians, Crary Bear in aimitted to he a remher of the Sisraeton Band and he hes Rot been allotted on the Devil's take Reservation. His son has imypovrements upon h 8 allotment, anit*e father and mther live with hin. This office seen ne good reason for cancelling the allotment made to hin eleven years ago, ani allowing him to take Lands on the Devil's Lake reservation. In ————— = the opinion of this offine the allotent should stand. ‘ ee Very Respectfully, aio * W.A. donen, oe : eal Comuinsioner. House of Representatiwes U.S. February 10, 19%4. Hon. Commissioner of Indian Affairs, Sir: I would respectfully request to be in- formed as to the present status of a contest, in- stituted by one Joseph Halbauer, against allotment #410, for the 8.W,1/4 W.W.1/4, N.W.1/4 S.W.1/4 13, and S.B.L/4 ¥.2.1/4 and §.B.1/4 S.B.1/4 14-125-54, in what was former’y the Sisseton Indian Reservation in South Dakota, Washington, D. C. Iand-Scelee 6451-1912 8802E-191z JFYr "ranerite patent in fee, Mr. Sanford E. Allen, WOV 13 53:2 Sapt. Sieseten Soahool. Sir: There is enclosed mtent in fee Eo. 299022 ieened to Hick Seie, purchaser of imte 2, 3 apd ity tt Leet. 4-TJ-2. Actins Chief Land Division. 11 bari Zisig wear kr. Jonnecn: Heceipt ie acknowledced of your Secretary's letter cf tctover 31, 1916, tranemitting certain cor- responuence reiative “Farm homee for returning Sol- Giere", incluciny copies of two letters from the Board of iruetees of tne Town of Aden, Gouth Daxota. ine lana referred .to in tne correspondence ie described as 6.,(0U acree Government lanc in haerehail County, Seutn sakota, and it is suggested by tne Commi: - sioner of tre General iand Uffice, in hie letter to you of Auguet 24, 1914, tnat the lands referred to are be- lis wec tc be in the former tisseton Inaian reservation which were reserve. {cr scnool, church and efency purposes, ana tnat the aren covers only -4,00C acres. An exauination of the records of this “ffice show that 3264..25 acres comprising sections 16 and 36 with.n the ‘former wake Traverse HKeservation in South varota, were cenervec for comzon scnool purposes and mace subject t tne lawe of the state wherein located. Tnese lands were granted to the state for school p-.r- poses under the provisions of the Act of arch 3, 1691 (26 Etat. 1036-1030), and thie Department has no jurie- Giction over saia lands. In addition to the acreace reservec for school purposes 697 acres was reserved for Various religioue bodies, ana 654.01 acres for adminis- trative pury,oves in connection with: the Sisseton Agency. Tne tolei acreare incluced in the several reservations above enuwerated amounts to 34147.26 acres, and of this entire awount only 65. acres remaine uncer the jurisdic- tion of thie ~epartment. It seeme froc the foregoing that your correspond- ente have ceen misinformed both as to the acreaye involved and @6 to ite present etatuc. The papers subuitted are ree turmec, anc there if also enclosed an extra copy of thin lette-c. Very truly yours, he . . —= 7 -#F*t -- ?¢ (Si- 7) Eee a Hon. Acyal 7. Jonneon, Ses ‘ Hou € of nepresentatives, Assietant Commisnionrr. ll Bro € oak From Ae > > a 3 BbPebeli.c We - . 12 wes : pike GO Mivan * ~ay 2+ 3 a ABORT Y \% Wwe OT M8 ‘ AUG BY tu t. gueact QV. gt 4 1 ai . [Ss 4 OOP tee «os + 4 AG. ot AP freeurs: - ¢steser : @ice Shiievs. / Tote OorG. ¢. Jdobeivou, dues ef «cr rserrsctiver. iy Coat br. Jormaecc: I am tn receipt o- your Letter oz ancusy lt, Tehs, wwekoeane « sompumicdiion acdressed ty the Soars pat Grucveet ci tnt Youn of saan, ‘South Dakota, to Kr. W. Le Mertiz, Vice Preatdent of the "Boo= ; ¥ a It lies slong the westrem line ef eur ceunty sad Reberts north efus , ani-is @ grest cetrinent Ste eur intresets , os it blocks the pregress of’ twe or three lines ef redlroeed that we are very saxicous to see campleted, We need these reads badly , sad the epening of the reservetien weuld give new impetus ta immigretien which hes been attracted by gevern - sent lands further west . Any informatien that will enable the citizens ef this sectien te render ony service that may be needed in hastening the epening will be appreciated . We alse respectfully ask your early attention te the matter if the consummetien ids left with your department , as I have bee inform itis. If any need should exist fer @,spesiel agent here , in the epening -, er 2 commissien te be sppeinted , I trust yeu will remember Yeurs truly. WA case Ay) (A cag PROOLUTTWIS OF THR CONVENTTO' of FRigh: Couniies you ere’geme to be! —~ Katey Serle idle “tad Here Gabriel. the ctvef, epoke up, ravinz: | I! the government don't settle ©p. there » - a cf tao “Waste, sen. ti 1002, Basia. Sze" oymarieaataaeryer” ae . Pg Scatiment. ‘ oo Mitt maxk,S D., May 21.—[Spectal. }— The comimittce appointed by [be convention a Watertownte oto Washington to urge the compiclivd of thd ACTAgemerite tne apen- tng the Nisseton ¢escrvation, eid @ Count oh ChiekGabvtior Nair tile and vine of hie heat-men at the-Bigr Voulce today. * After partaking ofa howntiful feast which had been prepared by tha committer, the party adjourned to a beautiful grove. The Indians seated Lhemecives ov tho xrewned tn a semi- ET penne _* (en. Pease catied on Rev. Chas. BR. Craw- ford, a half brother of the chief, to Invoke - | the dinner bicssing, after which tho general of te ascertaity . aphet to re- . tga, Chief Gabriel - Ren vitié wasthe first to. apéak, Wor. Mr. Crawford interpreting. The ehict anid in aubatnied® Pdea't fet that fo mode thet wt the cil at Dig "Brule;to, Urge Haye of-tha fie As Fe fon Reservation. tivetet Renvitie, with Mie fata tc on ih ext Beighber. indians Compiain that Their BérPideate| of os rates for ‘Lind the theie Cutidsee pect _ mens of Indian Eloqnence—Kedutee's — . Cirele, With tho committer eeeupy lag ehaite, | wth Dakota we will he one wed help We thank you and depend on sem te we . he advanced and shook hands wit! . Pease and Maj. Diges, Daj. Diees nnn ond Cook spoke, telling them ther ty ™ HOt CXPect too ae. 1 f ani the eterétary of ty t men, — could get. As they ant vend my th ground, cach one gmoked a few whida © & stone pipe with a iong stem ant re At the com ie ‘ the interpreter, « their own TAters, Ley _geunte eberus “wh,” in tt ws Neodbes thet te tet leak ns ph Alter & continuous session ef 6 thiwe hours, by hand shakin ati vel ————— F white men bodey 26 see gk ——_— 1 acres of land. The bil g vest. Qi Cl or ever oi. Use dole Of Ue b ACG, Willa bh) actes to Lucse beiween | 21, and @ acres to ali wacer IR He + io Shoe perce and overal.:. j Mochel henvilic, @ grey bawed mar «6. } BOK! epeke. tacone: Vou beve heerd ehowt the mistake of + j* eS Lie wie Leet 2b ted ae ¥ the Gual eettlement w made sloud E 1 ©) eet epesk farther of thar | BIT IES?E isis Hi tHE j etek ht ; z F tet Fat Biss ac .? 3 3 oJ HM @owmesecoeecaes § j 1 fit ; -—— om een ' Meh kp cmree PY at ee /. Leys 4, Caen. Gs = 2 oars ee a ee Ir *) — ~ ™ \- Ss. cy REE eS ee aan HE > IPANK OF Sign ILBANK. at es onan ene enema ‘2 edly Bargent rd Diggs. Bankars. \ ae \ ~ Milhant, Sarth: bak. 7 18 5G Nok. he sebbe de 7 by italien eames Ae f= writ ae al the % ome he iy Oe tenth Besecot— A ot Of tte oe eprtorie Fete Reer ine. oy 7 ’ l >» oo ' , . .* . wz . ; iv 2.3 @*9 r7~ ° , . : . . a) wd a 7” wad ~ > “+t0.6 » 23h . »% “-«* S . >Ti ‘ ™~ toa ce 3h. A : } wiAN a ATMS ‘ - weshiagten, 4g 1995. The ronoractie, ife oetcetary of the interior. Sir: I heave the neror to achmowlecge the recelpt, cy Lepartment ref- erence, of a Communication fro@ 0. #. Diggs, of Miloank, South Dakota, Gatzc >ay 4,1998, ta whico he states that a convention af delegates from ali the Counites conticuows to the Sisseton neservation, was re- cenily “eld at walertowa, to Consult as to the steps necessary to secure tne early oceatoa of seld reservation to settlerent. #2 states that the reservation has for years been a Sarrier to the extension of rucn needed railroads, anc aska if there ts any thiag that tan Ce cone *9 facilitate its oresina. ine Sisseton neservation created ty the treaty of Fetruary 19, 1367, fi Stats.,£02), contains 919,799 ecres of which some 157,227 acres have teen al.vttec in severalty, anc 1,417 acres reserved for church anc otcer turposes, leaving 32 surclus 0: sowe 799,475 acres. fn his recort cated Lecemcer 29,1897, sutritting senecules of al- lotrents made on tris reservation, Special Agent (iantner expressed the Ovinton taeat the Indiens were then cretarec io cisguse of 2 rart of thease Sufelus lanés, end thot 1t woulé ce asvisacle to negotiata with ther, re- 22 =” because rany of them were needy and should have houses cuilt, éc. Yoe Sth section of the Act of february 8,.1897 [24 State., 2a}, provices “That at any time after lands have been allotted to alj of the indians of any trite, as hereia provided, or sooner, if tn the opinion of the Frestéent it shall te for the best interests of saic trtbe, it shall ce lawful for the Secretary of the Ir*srtor to negotiate with such Indtan trice jor the purchase anc release by said tribe, in conformity with the treaty or statute uncer which such reservation is hel¢c, of such portion of its reservation not allottec as such trite shall, from time to time, consent to sell, on such teres and conditions as shall ce consicerec Just and eoultadle between the tinilec States and said tribe of Indtans, which purchase shell not ce complete until ratified by Congress, and the form end wanner of executing such release shall also be prescribed by Congrass. ~ {The treaty of 1997 contains no provisions epplicable to such ne- aottations. The allotments on this reservation have virtually been completed, although it £8 possible that there may be a very few persons still entt- tled to allotwents, who were not found by Special Agent Lightner. It would, | telieve, ta for the best interests of the Indians to throw oren to settlement a lerse tortion of thetr surplus lands on such jugt enc ecuttacle terms as ray te egreed upon ty then. vhere lu no epprecttation available for the payrent of a Commis— sloc to nzgociate for the purchase of the surplus lands. Such negottations can proceec no further than securing the con- sent of the Indians to the sale of such cortion of the reservation as way te agreed upon, enc “U7 WASHINGTON, Auuet Lb, rss, Honcre cle. ‘be Secretar, of the Interior, sits ! fave the nor t :¢ honor ic +rensmit herewith, for your approval, Greught of inetructions for the guidance of a Commission (te be Sena e \ aproinued, to nezotiiate with the Sieseton and Wahpeton Indizne for the sels of their turplus lends under the provieions of «he Ast of Fenruery 83,1837, (a Stets. ,348), Very respect fully, Your obedient servent, y, i Att 2: tte. 2s S %" —* Commissioner. (Allen) | yas a. . * e ~e Lc ‘= ed “ eg oo OFFICE OF INDIAN AFH AIPS Weashinatcy August 15, 2S, er lewen Spon receipt nereo? vos will proceed to the Sressi.c Avency .ercte for the pursose cf necotietins with tre Sisseten «nt ferretcn Imiene for the relingvistment, cf eveh porisue of br Lake ‘iraverse Reservaioarwnet elletied.eas said Indiens me. concen to -@leass. Suen nevotiations are suthcrised sy the Sth Section of -22 Asi of S¢5ruecy 7,1587 which provides: ° Taat et any time afcer Tancs nave reen eliot.ted +9 al] ahe diene of any tribe es herzin pt-- viced,o> aonn-> if in ure opirion of the President it shel! b¢ for the bes. amtercsete cf said trire it sholi be Jawfu) fcr - 5. seers tary of *ne In-erics *c nerot late with even Indian ¢ribe fer the ourchere em releecs by sata Lrabe,in cenfornity with si treet oP stetuts umie> which suci reservation is held o” sreh oor jens of {t- seeerre*inn a~ ef 'etted es euch trihé 6nuii from tia 75 Lams consent 106 €€1).0n such teres ani cenditiona a6 8.11 *2 con eideret “ver end 6guitehle,sevween the tmived Starse uw: «+; 7 Pie eae’ murenme, Bn 13 nee. ne commiete until reiifies ©: Cone orete ant ihe foe eno meaner of ameeut in: gueh rejease roo li c's. he opeseritet 5. Con tes”. iw Lete Treverre Peseeva: ion wes cteated ny the Ure 4m .cic Re %,% 2a%.° he wear ihe Unicet Stetes ang the Siseasorn «i2 #:7- Scmmct OF “wiret. sivur Imians coneiuasd Febeusr; mw Binet, st Cémtnins Gis Tot ecres, of Which sere if OST werer have ‘ee eilstied in cevorutty and 1,417 eoves reserved for church ar! oUhe™ pumposer ’eerine e« surplus of eome 7o?,47¢ cores. ihe eilotmen.» nave virtuelly. ceen com teted although it ds oossivie that cone few individus!s who werc not cr the resereiior, wher the gilotmenie were mede in ISX7 ere entitled to elicurer ve. The treety meker mo provision rererding the e¢esion ot 7 eiin- Qquishtent of the serservation cr any porticn thereoi. It ie umieretood that the Indians desire to sell a portion et. leset of their surplus lends. You wiligcell « full council of the vende end esudmit ts euc- dec. for ‘heir consideration. If a mejority of such ecuncil de- termine to sel? any ocrtion of ths reservetion,yeu wil! then egrse upen the quent: of lend to be ecold, end ite locaiien, which should he described ©) seetions,or other lezel subdivisions of tornchipe. It is not considened advieanle tinnat the ceerion a this tine should embrace e]] these surplus iands. A sufficient qusntity should "e reserve for future contingencies. The term end onditions of the sele should then be sicrae? upon,wrich should be juet em equitable to uhe Indiens,ex weli cw te the United & gues, You @ii. €x isin to the Intiens thet uner the Aai. of Ped: ins » %.% S.}887 the eum acreed ce bs seid as purchase money,wii! Bp id 2 ———E——e ets eee one or em rer inthe Treseurs ef iin United Sinves for tusir cole vse the rent with interes’. theresa at 5 per cent Cer amews,t2 be ct ell tins sumect LO agprcpricien uy Vonzrse|s for tre eduselits anc ize izetion of said trisens. ‘the terms ans conditions azreed upon in Council with the ts. scription of the Jends te be melinouished should te reduce? to vritire ent incorporeted inthe acconvenying forn of usreerent.. which shoula be simed by at Isest a majority of ths mele edulte of the bends, Al! euch edults shevic be viven en opportunity te fic, When freeiy and proceriv sierec,your cerLificates emi ti esr: tificate of the Ifticial Interpreter, should he sitachedi sc whe inst.runent.. ‘ths proceedings of the Council should be reduest 12 writin: and ettested Cy your signatures end thet of the Official Inverpro- tar. The Imtiene shoul? be informed that the nerot fc: ijone rill) ro, he velid or bindgins ontii retifiea by Voruyre6se. Very respec fully, 7 % vOBrut Zac's”. Alion) Aeros’: — bene can S$ $7 a Arty > Fe oh = 6 ft. > 1c panes sEVL O72, OFFICE CF INDIAN AFFAIRS, @ASHINGTON. .o7. 12,144", Whe Reo" ys, Thr Seeesg Mey Of *P> ipteriar. Shr; Keferrint +o your conrurice.icn dated Septener 5,1988,dcs- fgnet ine RLV bert, Aseletent Cownleeiones of Indien /ffsire, A.M." iakar US-Irdim lmcector, Gob ractker Spsetel Imiian font, for the auty of oontnet Ine navotieations sith the Siseeton ea “2h. peton Irviiars for tre eal2 of their surplus Isras,ernd to your let- ter of seprem ier 247 .)458 rerokins the desicration of hon.B.¥. seit, ! pave the honest 10 vetomwrent thet -o1.4.chittlecey Secretary cf iMG Soert of Tide “omuieeioners,he Ceriznaea in siece of «Tr. Pejyt axd Uharloe 7. vexwell fac. Coie! 7° the “ent Divieion of this Offies in pine. of *pecdul sitrt rarer eho is noe exvegéd in in oortent, duty #t ¢ plees remits fron che Siseeton serervetion. Ix *r-orres. Of «2. TListleter eis -6 acid from ine funds «-- treericwrde for *Se erpemer of te ~osra ef Inainn Somniesionerr. vhe epeota ea of ar, dentebi is Tecéorertsed ~+caure it it aeee cd tmroeson*. the. ore af 458 Sifieers siculh % *homusnnds ee sGT he ABTS foe Aieiciwy of theee bwtiens thelie mencreg {on ac ~rettly efa@ea nv ayvasaites. in the event. of his cesizn-atifon Swe ority ic regvested for tn peymer oF Sis set cl ext cecoseers Maveiling ang abhor tagicers.. eo UMbeneés incurdin.: subrietence,frer ‘jentinsenciar Indien eq rertment ,1820* 4 balance of hich is evaileble for tha: puspose. 't is récarced an important thet the Cropoeed ne. dtiat ions shutld bs comfences e& goun ae poenil ie. Vary reepecofuily, Your otedien servant — lone oner. bad Al len! . A GRAMMATICAL ANALYSIS OF A PORTION OF SECTION 30 OF THE ACT OF CONGRESS OF MARCH 3, 1891 Seven members of the English Department at The University of South Dakota responded to the request by the Attorney General of the State of South Dakota to interpret “he grammatical construction and meaning of a portion of Section 30 of the Act of Congress of March 3, 1891. The clause in question reads as follows: 1 That the lands by said agreement ceded, sold, 2 reiinquished, and conveyed to the United States 3 shall immediately, upon the payment to the 4 parties entitled thereto of their share of the 5 funds made immediately available by this act, 6 and upon completion of the allotments as pro- 7 vided in said agreement, be subject only to entry 8 and settlement under the homestead and townsite 9 laws of the United States, excepting the six- 10 teenth and thirty-sixth sections of said lands, 11 which shall be reserved for common school pur- 12 poses, and be subject to the laws of the State 13. wherein located: The structure of this clause leads to an apparent ambiguity: whether the final phrase, “and be subject to the laws of the State wherein located,” is controlled by the first “shall” (line 3) or by the second “shall” (line 11). If the phrase is controlled by the first “shall,” then the meaning of the final phrase is, “That the lands (line 1)...shall (line 3)... be subject to the laws of the State wherein located” (lines 12-13). If the second “shall” controls, then the meaning is, "“...the sixteenth and thirty-sixth sections (lines 9-10)... shall be reserved (line 11)...and be subject to the laws of the State (lines 12-13)...." It is most difficult to ascertain the intent of a statement as ambiguous as this one through a grammatical analysis. Sentence Structure results from the writer's individual eccentricities, educational background, and societal expectations, none of which are known in this case. While grammar has no natural laws, it does have conventions. Those professors who examined the clause were able to deliver nions, based on those conventions, as to the writer's intent. majority, but not all, of this group feels that the intent of this clause is, “That the lands...shall...be subject to the laws of the State...” Following is a compilation of observations and analyses submitted by members of the English Department. 31 EE OEE LET LLL LOD l. Parallel structure. a. Parallelism in the clause functions best if the first "shall" (line 3) controls both of the “be subject” predicates (lines 7 and 12). If the intention of the writer were to create a parallel with “shall be reserved” (line 11), he may either have found a more convenient way to express “subject to entry and settlement” (lines 7-8) (e.g., “entered and settled"), or have omitted the “be” in the final verb and the final comma (line 12) (i.e., "be reserved for common school purposes and subject to the laws of the State wherein located.”) b. The verb phrase which ins with “shall” in line 3 is not completed until line 7 with “be subject." Assuming that the second “be subject” (line 12) is controlled by the same “shall,” there is a parallelism in style in which the completion of the verb is delayed by intervening parenthetical material. On the other hand, the other "shall" verb phrase--"shall be reserved" (line 11)--is not separated, implying that it is a single unit functioning only within a subordinate clause. c. The use of one auxiliary to control two verbs of essenticlly different, even contradictory, meanings would be unusual. Hence the “shall” of line 11 is probably not intended to control both “be reserved" (line 11) and "be subject” (iine 12). Word Order. a. Although it may seem natural that modifying elements would be placed in close —* to the modified material, suggesting that the final phrase logically attaches to the second “shall,” such need not bs the case. The clause is of the structural type known es periodic, which means that the important parts of a sentence are suspended until the end. As a stylistic device, the periodic structure was common up through the nineteenth century, but is not much used today. b. The first “shall...be subject” (lines 3, 7) is interrupted by two significant modifying prepositional phrases: “upon the payment..." (line 3), and “upon completion..." (line 6). Another modifying phrase--“excepting the sixteenth and thirty-sixth sections of said lands, which shall be reserved for common school purposes..." (lines 9-12)--is inserted to permit the second “be subject” (line 12) to appear last. If the sentence were to end with a non-restrictive “which" clause (lines 11-13), all the care that the writer took to state the prepositional modifiers of the first “be subject” verb come to nothing. Punctuation. ommas are used for two purposes in the clause: to separate items in a series and to set off non-restrictive modifiers. a. The verbals in lines 1-2 create sequence of more than two, and the commas are used inthe obvious and conventional manner. Less obvious i the comma between "act" and “and upon...” in lines 5-6 Normally, a comma is omitted when the series has only wo items separated by a conjunction. The presence of acomma at that point argues that the final comma (line 12 also separates two serial items, making the final phras dependent on the "shall" of line 1l. There are two dfferences, however. One is that the “upon” phrases (line 3-7) are quite long, justifying a pause even though stricly speaking a comma is not required. The final lines ar much shorter. The second difference is in the parallelsm. The two “upon ‘phrases are totally parallel and equi. In lines 11-13, had the writer wished to maintain th parallel structure he so carefully uses throughout, he ould probably have repeated the words “which shail.” Tese lines do not appear to be items in a series. b. The use of commas operating in pirs to set off non- restrictive modifiers appears consisent. The commas | before the first “upon” (line 3) andafter “agreement (line 7) enclose the parenthetical material separating the auxiliary "shall" from its compaion “be subject (line 7). kewise, the comma befor: “excepting” (line 9) and after “purposes” (lines 11-12) s¢ off a statement which lifies the verb “be subject” (lin«7). This final Gam (line 12) forms a double duf in that it also sets off the *which" clause, an adjecival subordinate Clause modifying “sections” (line 10) i} = oe Poe ing observations and analyes support the conaneniie that the writer's intentwas to allow the first "shall" to control the fina’ phrase, with the resultant interpretation that al of the lands, not just those sections reserved for sc0ol purposes, are to be subject to state law. The faculty members liste below contributed to the analysis of this passage but do »t necessarily concur with all of the details of the steements. Assoc. Prof. Raphael Block Assoc. Prof. Stephen Dill Assoc. Prof. Thomas Gasque Aest. Prof. Gervase Hittle Asst. Prof. William Lemons Asst. Prof. Susan Robbins Asst. Prof. Adrian Weiss DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR, APPENDIX WASHINGTON, March 10, 1900, The following diagrammatic arrangement, k but capitalizing the main clenents, cumariees’ map ~~ - aemmanae ors Hon. John M. Thurston, Chairman, That Committee om Indian Affairs, United States senate. Sir:- ceded sold . I have the honor to be in receipt, by our reference of the and conveyed 9th ultimo, of 8.2021, "A Bill for the restoretion of anmwitics SHALL to the Sisseaton and Wahpeton bands of Dakota or Siowx Indians, and immediately the Medawakauton and Yapakoota (Santee) Indiens, declared for@oited bo Payment to by the act of February 16th, 18663,* parties en- be thereto completion of This bill is intended to restore to the bands of Indians their share +UPON 4 of the funds + and upon san ’ named, certain treaty annuities which were .eclared forfeited by made immediate- pe available said agreement ho cct referred to, because of their participation in the Indian this act rebellion in Minnesota in 1862, BE SUBJECT The armmuities thus forfeited by the Medawakanton and Wah . only pakoota (Santes) bands, snounte: to 43,052,792.83, arising under ENTRY and treaties of 1637 and 1651, and by the Sisseton and Wahpeton bands TO (carecennee} under the homestead and townsite laws of the , . - United States to $2,721,432.36, arising under a treaty made in 1651, enseptiag the ery and On Jenuary 15, 1698, the Department snbsitted to the Con- . thirty-s sections of said lands gress full and complete statements of all financial transactions shall which pane ‘ with these four bands of Indians, undér the treaties and act of . for common or acreemants school purposes Congress referred to, and under all subsequent treaties, made with and them, and acts of Congress passed in their behalf. These statc- BE SUBJECT ments or reports were called for by the act of Concress approved TO THE LAWS of the State wherein located: June 7, 1697, (30Statutes, 89), aid are known as Senate Donunen Ree wR Re 8 eee 162 Reservations by Executive Order.—Of the fifty-six established by executive order, the title has not been held to be permanent, but the land has been subject to restoration to the public domain at the pleasure of the President. Under the general allotment act, however, of 1887 (24 Stats., p. 388), the tenure has been materially changed and all reservations, whether established by Executive order, act of Congress, or treaty, are held to be 62 permanent. At XXX-XXXI. REDUCTION OF RESERVATIONS. At the date of the last annual report of this office there were one hundred and thirty-three Indian reservations in the United States (counting the twenty-two small reserves of the Mission Indians of California as one only and the nineteen Pueblo reserves in New Mexico also as one), having an aggregate area of about 116,000,000 acres or 181,250 square miles, which is greater than than of the New England and Middle States combined, greater than the aggregate area of the States of Ohio, Indiana, Illinois, and Kentucky, and nearly equal to the combined area of the two Dakotas and Montana. To carry the comparison further, it is larger by half than the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland, larger than Sweden or Norway, and nearly as large as either France or Spain. The total Indian population of the United States, e«clusive of Alaska, was, by the census of 1889, 250,483, and exclusive of the five civilized tribes in Indian Territory, 185,283. At XXXVIL. Where it is suitable for agricultural or grazing purposes, it is the present policy of the Government to allot land in severalty to the Indians within their respective reservations—160 acres to heads of families, 80 acres to single persons over eighteen years of age, 80 acres to orphan children under eighteen years of age, and 40 acres to each other single person under eighteen years of age—to patent these individual holdings, with a restriction against alienation for twenty-five years, or longer, in the discretion of the President, and to purchase from the respective tribes any or all of the surplus land remaining after t* 63 allotments have been made. The general law for this is the allotment act of February 8, 1887 (24 Stat. p. 388), applicable to all reservations, except those of the five civilized tribes and three others in the Indian Territory, those in the State of New York, and one in Nebraska adjoining the Pine Ridge Sioux Reservation, which was set apart by Executive order for the purpose of suppressing liquor traffic with the Indians. In numerous instances, where clearly desirable, Congress has by special legislation authorized negotiations with the Indians for portions of their reservations without waiting for the slower process of the general allotment act, which involves the survey of the land, the allotment in severalty by special agents appointed by the President for that purpose. and negotiations with the Indians for the cession and relinquishment of their surplus unallotted lands It is estimated that under such special legislation about 13,000,000 acres of land have been secured by cession from the Indians during the past year; and there are agreements now pending before Congress, through which, if ratified, the Government will acquire some 4,500,000 acres more; all ef which will, under the operation of these laws, be open to white settlement in the near future. Of the land actually acquired, about 9,000,000 acres are in North and South Dakota, secured from the Sioux (act of March 2, 1889, 25 Stat., p. 888), and about 4,000,000 acres in Minnesota,* acquired from the Chippewas (act of January 14, 1889, 25 Stat., p. 642). The agreements now pending in Congress will, if ratified, restore to the public domain about 1,600,000 acres in North Dakota, in the Fort Berthold Rese-vation; about 660,000 acres in South Dakota, in the Lake Traverse (Sisseton,) Reservation; about 185,000 acres in Idaho, in the Coeur d’Alene Reservation; about 1,095,000 acres in Colorado, being the whole of the southern Ute Reservation; and about 941,000 acres in Oklahoma Territory, now embraced in the Pottawattomie, Iowa, and Sac and Fox Reservations; a grand total of upwards of 17,400,000 acres, or about one-seventh of all the Indian lands in the United States. in cultivation, that the Indians did not need it and would not be likely to need it at any future time, and that they were, as is believed, reasonably well paid for it, the matter assumes quite a different aspect. The sooner the tribal relations are broken up and the reservation system done away with the better it will be for all concerned. If there were no other reason for this change, the fact that individual ownership of property is the universal custom among the civilized people of this country would be a ath reason for urging the handful of Indians to adopt 65 As a general rule, | would not advise the purchase of surplus lands until the Indians have been located upon and absolutely secured in their individual holdings. Give them their patents and see that they are fairly started in the paths of civilization, with their children in school, and then it will be time enough to negotiate with them for the sale of the surplus. There is always a clamor for Indian lands, but there is no such pressing need for more land for white settlement as to justify undue haste in acquiring it. It is true the general allotment act authorizes the Secretary of the Interior to enter into negotiations with Indians for the purchase of their surplus unalloted lands in advance of the completion of the individual allotments, if, in the opinion of the President, it shall be for their best interests to do so. In some cases, this may be desirable, but as a rule, I think it better that they should take their allotments first. Their lands are becoming more valuable every year, so that they can lose nothing, in a pecuniary sense, by withholding the sale of so much as they may have to dispose of until after this has been done. At XXXIX. It creates discontent, destroys the natural attachment for the soil, disturbs whatever progress in localization and settlement may have been made, and retards progress in every way. I fully agree with the late distinguished General of the Army (General Sheridan) that “every section of country should control the bad elements of its own population—not endeavor to foist them upon other more fortunate districts—and this is especially true of the Indians, who should, as far as possible, be controlled where they now are.” At XXXIX. Leaving out the five civilized tribes and the Alaska Indians, it would take about 30,000,000 acres of land to give to every Indian in the United States—man, woman, and child—160 acres each. There would still remain, in round numbers, 66,000,000 acres of Indian land, (exclusive of the reservations of the five civilized tribes), which, at $1 per acre, probably a fair average, would yield $66,000,000, the annual interest on which, at five per cent, would be $3,300,000—a sum sufficient to pay the entire cost of educating all the Indian children in the United States. At the end of a few years, the principal sum might properly be distributed per capita among the rightful owners to assist them in improving their homes, when they could be left like other citizens to care for themselves. Here we have an immense landed estate belonging to the Indians, which, if judiciously managed. by the Government, ought to place them on the high road to prosperity, and relieve the Government of a great financial burden. It is not essential to their prosperity that they should have a great fund in the Treasury to draw upon for their support; on the contrary, it would be a positive evil. But I would sell their surplus lands, place themoney inthe Treasury, and expend theinterest in assisting them to break and fence their lands, to build comfortable houses, to provide themselves with agricultural implements, seeds and stock, and, most important of all, to educate their children. It will not do to say that they do not hold their land by such a title as to render it obligatory upon the Government to give them the proceeds of the sale of their surplus. All of which I have spoken is held by them either by virtue of sacred treaty stipulation, by act of Congress, 67 or by executive order, and with possibly a few exceptions, even those who occupy reservations established by authority of Congress, or by executive order, have as good a claim, in equity,to absolute ownership as those who hold them by virtue of treaties with theGovernment. As already stated, the general allotment act of February 8, 1887, confirms the Indian title in all existing reservations. It provides that in all cases where any tribe or band of Indians has been or shall hereafter be located upon any reservation created for their use, “either by treaty stipulation or by virtue of an act of Congress, or by executive order, setting apart the same for their use,” the President of the United States may, whenever in his opinion any reservation or any part thereof is suitable for the purpose, allot the lands of said reservation in severalty to the Indians located thereon, in quantities as specified; and that after lands shall have been so allotted, or sooner, if in the opinion of the President it shall be for. the best interests of the Indians, it shall be lawful for the Secretary of the Interior to negotiate with such Indian tribe for the purchase and release by said tribe, in conformity with the treaty or statute under which such reservation is held, of such portions of its reservation not allotted as such tribe shall from time to time consent to sell, “upon such terms and conditions as shall be considered just and equitable between the United States and said tribe of Indians.” 1 desire to ask special attention to the great importance of theearly ratification of agreements made with Indians for the cession of portions of their reservations. Delay in such matters is not understood by them, often works hardship, creates unrest, begets distrust, and greatly retards their progress. It should be remembered 68 that while these agreements often involve the appropriation of large sums of money, the amount is almost wholly re-imburseable from the sale of the land. CHIPPEWA INDIANS IN MINNESOTA. The commission appointed under the isi the act of January 14, 1889, (25 Stat. p. be detrei with all the different bands or tribes of Oi Indian inthe State of Minnesota for a “complete cession ina relinquishment in writing of all their title and interest and to all the reservations of said Indians in the State of Minnesota, except the White Earth and Red Lake Reservations, and to all and so much of these reservations as in the judgment of said commission is not required tomake and fill the allotments required by this and existing acts,” etc., submitted its final. report under date of December 26, 1889, At XL-XLL prnoys the date of the last annual report, the 134] a Loker aeton and Wahpeton indians, on Traverse Reservation, in North and South Dakota, have been delivered to the Indians. The sSwement, however, for the cession of their surplus lands yw — peo provides for additional ai t each Indian belonging to the reservation shall have 160 acres of land. At XLV. The division of Indian lands i theulti . in severalty and auteme ae uction of the tribal andreservation being inevitable, the Indians should be taught to look forward to this and be to meet it. At XLIX. prepared, so far as practicable, 69 THE UMATILLA RESERVATION IN OREGON. After much delay the necessary surveys for the carrying out of the provisions of the act of March 3, 1885 (23 Stats. 341), which provides for the allotment of lands in severalty to the Indians of the Umatilla Reservation, in Oregon, and the appraisement and sale of — their surplus lands, have been executed and approved, and a commission has been appointed by thePresident to classify and appraise the surplus lands, that is, the lands outside of the diminished reservation established by order of the Secretary of the Interior, under and in accordance with the provisions of the act of October 17, 1888 (25 Stats. 559), an act amendatory of the former act. XLIX-L. Large bodies of lands now included in reservations are practically worthless for farming purposes, without irrigation. The spread of the white population over the public domain, the reduction of reservations, the confining of Indians to ever-narrowing borders, makes the problem of their support one of increasing difficulty and urgency. At Cl. As stated in my last report, this reservation is triangular inform, with its southern point near Watertown, S. Dak., and reaching north about 90 miles, covering a small piece of North Dakota. It contains about 918,000 acres of land of which there are taken for allotments about 128,000 acres, leaving of surpluslands 79,000 acres. It is prairie land, with some timber in the deep ravines and about the lakes and streams. The amount of timber provides no supply for the settlement of the country, and is almost wholly covered by the allotments already taken. The soil is rich, and all vegetation makes a wonderful eT 70 7B. growth whenever supplied with sufficient moisture. SALE OF SURPLUS LANDS. In November last commissioners of the General Government held a council with these indians for the purpose of obtaining a proposition to sell their surplus lands. A proposition was obtained, signed by a large majority of the tribe, and the same is now before Congress for ratification. It is earnestly hoped that said agreement will be ratified, in order that these Indians may be relieved from a half-starved, half-clothed condition and placed in more comfortable circumstances. At 65. REPORT OF THE SECRETARY OF THE INTERIOR, H. EXEC. DOC. 51ST CONG., 2d SESS. VOL. II (1890-91) And again, while this Territory has been forming, great additions from the Indian reservations have been made to the public domain soon to be opened to settlement. The various Indian commissions have made agreements, now awaiting Congressional action, with different tribes for many millions of acres. At I. INDIAN AFFAIRS But it needs to be said that a much larger area of land than is necessary is held for Indian occupancy. There are not more than 250,000 Indians within the borders of the United States (excluding Alaska). The greaterpart of these reside upon or have some interest in the existing reservations, the others living upon a portion of the public domain. The aggregate area of the Indian reservations was, at the last report, about 116,000,000 acres, or 181,250 71 square miles, which is, as calculated by the Indian Commissioner, “greater than that of the New England and Middle States combined, greater than the aggregate area of the States of Ohio, Indiana, Illinois, and Kentucky, and nearly equal to the combined area of the two Dakotas and Montana; or, to carry the comparison further, ~ larger by half than the United Kingdom or Great Britain and Ireland, larger than Sweden or Norway, and nearly as large as either France or Spain.” There has been a reduction during the fiscal year by cession of Indian title to reservations under ratified agreements to the extent of about 13,000,000 acres of lands heretofore held by them, leaving the aggregate area of reserved land at this time over 103,000,000 acres. _. The surplus held in reservation appears therefore to be unreasonably large. A large portion of it is iying idle, and is a bar to the Indians’ progress, and our country s development. To restore this to the public domain will work no hardship to the Indians pif the consions are mace upon terms as fair as have charicterized the sere recently negotiated. Those Indians expecially who are supported by the Government, not because of treaty obligations, but in order to sav: them from starvation, should not continue to hold these large tracts without actual occupancy or use. It would be better for each tribe to part with its claim for a money consideration “hat would create a fund to be securely held by the Unit States, and upon which it could ¢-pend for the support © its members until, by proper use if individual homesteads, they may support themselves. 72 INDIAN CESSIONS. The cessions made by various tribes should be moreparticularly set forth, as there were serious obligations imposed on the United States thereby that have not yet been performed. THE GREAT SIOUX IN NORTH AND SOUTH DAKOTA. At XXIII-XXIV. THE CHIPPEWAS IN MINNESOTA. At XXVI. OTHER CESSIONS MADE. There are pending in Congress agreements as follows: For the cession of about 1,600,000 acres of the Fort Berthold Agency Reservation in North Dakota, negotiated under provisions of the act of May 15, 1886 (24 Stats., 44); for about 184,960 acres of the Coeur d’Alene Reservation in Idaho, negotiated under the act of March 2, 1889 (25 Stats., 1003); for about 600,000 acres of the Lake Traverse Reservation in South Dakota, negotiated under the provisions of section 5 of the general allotment act of February 8, 1887 (24 Stats., 388); for about 1,095,000 acres of the Southern Ute Reservation in Colorado, negotiated under the fourth section of the act of May 1, 1888 (25 Stats., 133), and for about 7,871 acres of the Flathead Indians in Bitter Root Valley, Montana, negotiated under the provisions of the act of March 2, 1889 (25 Stats, 871). These should all have early attention by Congress. CESSIONS BY VARIOUS TRIBES THROUGH THE CHEROKEE COMMISSION. At XXVII. 73 OTHER COMMISSIONS TO NEGOTIATE CESSIONS. The appointment of the following commissions was also authorized during the last session of Congress: NORTHERN BAND OF CHEYENNES. At XXVIII. TURTLE MOUNTAIN BAND. (3) To negotiate with the Turtle Mountain band of Chippewa Indians, in North Dakota, for the cession and relinquishment to the United States of whatever right e interest they may have in or to any and all land in said State to which they claim title, and for their removal to the White Earth Reservation in Minnesota; . . . WARM SPRINGS INDIANS. (4) To visit ard thorougiily investigate and determine as to the correct location of the northern line of Warm Springs Indian Reservation in Oregon, and to negotiate with the Indiars located on the Colville Reservation in Washington fo. the cession of such portion of the reservation as the Indians aze willing to dispose of, that the same may be opened to settlement. At XXIX. CROW INDIANS. The act of September 25, 1890, entitled “An act to authorize the Secretary of the Interior to procure and submit to Congress a proposal forthe sale to theUnited States of the western part of theCrow Indian Reservation ache rat 74 in Montana,” provides for a commission of three persons, to be appointed by the Secretary of the Interior, to negotiate with the Crow Indians for a surrender to the United States of all that portion of their reservation in Montana, or so much thereof as they will consent to surrender, which is situated south of the Yellowstone River and west of the divide between Pryor Creek and Clark’s Fork, in said State. None of the agreemerts that may be made by these commissions are to be valid until ratified by Congress. At XXX Under the authority contained in the fifth section of the general allotment law (24 Stats., 388) successful negotiations were conducted with the Sisseton Indians in South Dakota for the cession of their surplus lands, and the agreement entered into for this purpose, which was submitted to Congress early in the session, passed the Senate, but failed to receive favorable consideration in the House of Representatives. The failure to ratify this agreement is a matter to be greatly regretted, as many of theIndians are in a destitute condition, owing to repeated crop failures, due to successive droughts, and are likely to suffer from want during the coming winter. The payment of annuities, long unjustly withheld from them, as provided in the agreement, would have relieved their immediate necessities and secured them against further immediate . sufferings. At XXXV. It is also worthy of consideration whether the period now allowed the tribe to determine whether it will receive allotments should not be put under control of the President, so that if he deems it proper in any particular 8A. 75 case he may shorten the time for exercising the choice, for as the law stands many tribes give no attention to the subject and delay unreasonably all negotiations. At XXXVL SIXTEENTH ANNUAL REPORT OF COMMISSIONER OF INDIAN AFFAIRS (1891). Although many, like those just mentioned, are under the immediate control of the Government andrequire more or less of vigilant surveillance, multitudes of others, such as the Indians in New York, those in Michigan, and the 65,000 of the five civilized tribes, are only nominally under Government control, while thousands, like the Santee Sioux, the Sissetons and Wahpetons, the Nez Perces, the Puyallups, etc., are, by the operation of the land-in-severalty law, becoming citizens and gradually passing out from under governmental supervision. If, however, the purpose is to incorporate the Indians into the national life as independent citizens, so that they may take their places as integral elements in our society, not as American Indians but as Americans, or rather as men, enjoying all the privileges and sharing the burdens of American citizenship, then this purpose should be not only clearly and definitely stated, but should be dominant in all matters of legislation and administration. It should be understood not only by our own people but by the Indians themselves, and should be inculcated as a fundamental doctrine in every Indian school. At 4. (5) Justice.— The charge most frequently brought against the American people in reference to their dealings with thelndians is that of injustice. This charge is Erepe Fok \ . 76 sometimes flippantly made, and oftentimes rests upon no historical basis, and yet it is unfortunately true that the impression widely prevails in the popular mind and is deeply rooted in the mind of the Indians that treaties have been broken and that the Government has failed in numerous instances to perform its most solemn obligations. It certainly cannot be said that this great nation has intended to be unjust, and recent acts of legislation have shown conclusively a desire not only on the part of Congress, but of the people of the country generally, to fulfill to the letter all the obilgations, promises, and even expectations of the Indians. But justice is two-sided. It demands as well as concedes. While it is desirable that we should pay the Indians to the last dollar all that is due them, we should expect of them the fulfillment of their obligations. One great political truth has been made absolutely clear by the march of events, and that is that the people of the United States constitute one nation. There is no place within our borders for independent, alien governments, and theIndians must of necessity surrender their autonomy and become merged in our nationality. In requiring this we do not ask that they concede anything of real value to themselves, but only that for their highest welfare they abandon their tribal organizations, their provincialisms, their isolation, and accept in lieu thereof American citizenship and a full participation inall the riches of our civilization; By this great transformation they are the gainers, rather than we ourselves. At 6. If the policy of allotting lands is conceded to be wise, then it should be applied at an early day to all alike 77 wherever the circumstances will warrant. If we have settled upon the breaking up of the tribal relations, the extinguishment of the Indian titles to surplus lands, and the restoration of the unneeded surplus to the public domain, let it be done thoroughly. If reservations have proven to be inadequate for thepurposes for which they were designed, have shown themselves a hindrance to the progress of the Indian as well as an obstruction in the pathway of civilization, let the reservations, as speedily as wisdom dictates, be utterly destroyed and entirely swept away. At 8. (10) Time.— The great forces now at work, land in severalty with its accompanying dissolution of thetribal relation and breaking up of the reservation, the destruction of the agency system; citizenship, and all that belongs thereto of manhood, independence, privilege, and duty; education, which seeks to bring the young Indians into right relationship with the age in which they live, and to put into their hands the tools by which they may gain for themselves food and clothing and build for themselves homes, will, if allowed to continue undistrubed a reasonable length of time, accomplish their beneficent ends. They should be fostered, strengthened, maintained, and allowed to operate. At 9. When the Indians shall have become citizens of the United States this paternal control will: cease. They will no longer be subject in any respect to restraint by this office, but will have the right to go where they please and when they please. Their contracts will not be subject to approval by the Commissioner of Indian Affairs or the Secretary of the Interior, but will stand an equal footing with those of other United States citizens. There will be no ee 78 restriction of trade with them, and in fact whatever rights may be enjoyed by a citizen of the United States will be theirs, and they will no longer be subject to arrest at the instance of a United States Indian agent or by the Indian police, nor to trial and punishment by the courts of Indian offenses for misdemeanors over which those courts now have jurisdiction. At the same time, with the exception that their lands received under allotment laws will be exempt from taxation for a period of twenty-five years, and possibly longer, they will be subject to the burdens borne by other citizens, and must manage their own affairs. At 25. The policy above outlined will eventually make all Indians citizens of the United States, when the Indian reservation will no longer appear on our maps, and the autonomy of the tribes, a fact to us, will be mere history to the generations that will come. At 26. EARLY ALLOTMENTS The policy of dividing lands owned or occupied in common by an Indian tribe among its several members was inaugurated by act of March 3, 1839, which authorized the division of the lands of the Brothertown Indians (Wisconsin) by a commission of five of the principal head men, and for the issuance of patents in fee simple to the Indians and their heirs and assigns. The act also provided that upon the filing of the report of this commission, with a map of the allotments, and the transmission of the same to the President, the Brothertown Indians should be deemed citizens of the 79 United States, and be subject to its laws, and to those of the Territory of Wisconsin. By law or treaty this policy was subsequently applied, with various modifications as to the tenure of the lands allotted, the status of the allottees, the right of alienation, etc., to several other tribes, notably the Ottawas and Chippewas, the Pottawatomies, the Shawnees, and the Wyandottes. The Brothertown Indians (remnants of the Mohican and other New York tribes) long since passed from the notice of this office, and, so far as the other tribes are concerned, the records show that where their lands were conveyed in fee simple, with no restrictions as to alienation, they soon parted with them without sufficient consideration, and squandered what little they received. The disastrous result of this policy in several cases has led this office to insist thatthe right of alienation should be limited in some manner, so that Indians can not improvidently dispose of their lands. PROGRESS IN ALLOTMENTS. In 1887 the first general law was enacted (24 Stats., 388), and by its provisions lands were to be given to the several members of a tribe (except married women), in quantities differing according to the age of the allottee, or status as the head of a family, or otherwise. At 40. REDUCTION OF RESERVATIONS. The work of reducing the area of the reservations, by extinguishing by purchase from the Indians their title to the land and its restoration to the public domain, has been carried forward rapidly, as is shown in the following detailed statements: Counting the 22 small reserves of the Mission Indians of California as only one reserve and the 19 Pueblo reserves of New Mexico as one also, the number of reservations as given in the annual report of this office for 1890 was 138, having an aggregate area of about 104,314,349 acres, or 162,991 square miles. This amount is about 12,071,380 acres, or 18,861 square miles, less than the amount reported in 1889, while at the present time there are five more reservations than in 1889, owing to the division of the Great Sioux Reserv: tion, as provided by act of March 2, 1889. The agreements ratified by act of Congress approved February 13, 1891 (26 Stats., 749), restored to the public domain 391,184.65 acres from the Sac and Fox Reservations, in Oklahoma, including 25,194.61 acres for school purposes; and from the lowa Reservation, in the same Territory, 219,446.27 acres, including 12, 271.75 acres for school purposes. The ratification of agreements by the act of March 3, 1891 (26 Stats., 989), restored to the public domain from the Pottawatomie Reservation, Oklahoma, 309,134.77 acres, including 22,650.44 for school purposes; from the Cheyenne and Arapaho Reservation, Oklahoma, about 3,000,000 acres; from the Coeur d’Alene Reservation, Idaho, about 185,000 acres; from the Fort Berthold Reservation, North Dakota, about 1,600,900 acres; from the Lake Traverse Reservation, South Dakota, about 660,000 acres, and from the Crow Reservation, Montana, about 1,800,000 acres; a total of about 8,164,765 acres. At 44. 81 The ceded portion of the Fort Berthold Reservation, North Dakota, consisting of about 1,600,000 acres, has been thrown open to settlement by proclamation of the President. The ceded lands of the Coeur d’Alene Reservation, Idaho, were opened to settlement from the date of the approval of the act. Allotments of land are being made on the Lake Traverse Reservation, South Dakota, and the Cheyenne and Arapaho Reservation, Jklahoma, and surveys are in progress upon the Crow Reservation, Montana, and when they are completed and the terms of the act ratifying the respective agreements with the Indians of the several reservations shall have been fully complied with, the unallotted or vacant lands embraced within the ceded portions will be thrown open to settlement. The agreement with the Indians of the Southern Ute Reservation, in Colorado, referred to in my last annual report, was not ratified by the last Congress. NEGOTIATIONS FOR FURTHER REDUCTIONS. The Indian appropriation act for the fiscal year ending June 30, 1892 (26 Stats., 1010), contains the following provisions: To enable the Secretary of the Interior in his discretion to negotiate with any Indians for the surrender of portions of their respective reservations, any agreement thus negotiated being subject to subsequent ratification by Congress, $15,000 or so much thereof as may be necessary. At 45. yo He wae _ We 6 ‘ (1894-95) » = ‘"d CONG., 3rd SESS. VOL. 14 There are two means chief] relied and allotments of land in Suites ee 113 the Indians, forthe advancement of the Indians, not for the purpose of obtaining land connected with the Iadian reservation to satisfy the insatiable desire of border men, who obtain it frequently, not for homes, but for speculation. I urge a treatment of Indian land based solely upon the purpose of realizing from it for its owners the highest possible value. What is best for the Indians—to keep their land or to sell it? If the members of a tribe have reached a state sufficiently civilized to be able to progress still further by selling a portion of their land, then sales should be made; but the land should not be purchased from: the Indians at the best bargain the United States can make. It should be sold for the Indians by the United States, the Department acting as a faithful trustee, and obtaining for the Indians every dollar the land will bring. The policy of the Government and of the Department should be to recognize the land of the Indian reservation as the property of the particular Indians who own it. The different lands should be studied to see how best their value can be increased, and how they can be rendered most profitable. There are ample public lands in the United States for home-seekers; can we not be satisfied to allow to be administered in behalf of the Indians the little we have left them? At I-IV. ALLOTMENTS AND PATENTS.—The progress made in allotment work since the last annual report is as follows: ON RESERVATIONS-—Patents issued last year have been delivered to the following Indians: PottawatomiesinKansas 22. ee OSE — nn 821 pl - ~~ppyfllihbeaes ke EEE 125 lowas ee Nebraska © Eee ee 143 Wisconsin (under treaty of 1854) yuaerr Cage nie ate ee ee 85 Waactagecin Mean ee, H Allotments have been approved by the Indian Office and the Department, and patents are now being prepared in the General Land Office for the following Indians: On Yankton yy ~ pee 2d 6666 6 So UM aw 1,171 Siletz ee Oregon — x TY 2 Pe 5% a oe of oie Ac arbkatrree 118 (under styof 1854)... | 7 ow a 6 ¢ 6's 176 acted upon YuiewnWonpes 010 Ti ttre: SO Se a Pl 1 ee 1,851 ‘a oo ei agreements concluded in 1897? 3 with the Nez Perces, Yankton Sioux, Yuma, and 115 Siletz Indians, were ratified by the last session of Congress, and will result in restoring to the public domain some 921,000 acres of land. At IX. The opening of the Cherokee Outlet, by which 6,500,000 acres of land were added to the public domain, was fully treated in last year’s report. although the actual opening occurred during the present fiscal year. At XXXIX. OPENING THE INDIAN RESERVATIONS.—The governor is of the opinion that the allotment to the Indians, in severalty, of certain of the lands embraced within the Uintah and Uncompahgre reservations, and the opening for settlement and sale of the remaining lands, will prove of untold advantage and wealth to the new State. At XL. 12A.REPORT OF THE COMMISSIONER OF INDIAN AFFAIRS, H. EXEC. DOC. 54TH CONG., IST SESS. VOL. 15 (1895-96). You will notice that for three successive years the appropriations for Indian education have been reduced. There are over a quarter of a million Indians in the United States, and the unquestioned policy of the Government is their civilization and final absorption into the great body of the nation. At 16. OPENING OF CEVED LANDS. May 16, 1895, the President issued proclamations opening to settlement the surplus lands in the following reservations: Kickapoo, Okla., Siletz, Oreg., and Yankton, S. Dak. This was in accordance with the agreements with the respective Indians, ratified, the first by the act of Congress approved March 3, 1893 (27 Stats., 557), and the last two by the act approved August 15, 1894 (28 Stats., 286). The Kickapoo Reservation was opened May 23, 1895, the Yankton May 21, 1895, and the Siletz July 25, 1895. The checks for the first payment to the Nez Perces (except in cases where payment is suspended for letters of guardianship, etc.) have been transmitted to the agency for delivery to the Indians entitled thereto; also 1,575 patents to be delivered to allottees. This is in accordance with the agreement ratified by the act of August 15, 1894 (28 Stats, 286). It is expected that all preliminary requirements of the agreement will be complied with so as to permit the opening of the ceded lands by October |, if the Department so desires. At 24. Unitah and Ouray reservations, Utah.—Section 20 of the Indian appropriation act approved August 15, 1894 (28 Stats., 286), authorizes the President to appoint a commission of three persons to allot in severalty to the Uncompahgre Indians within their reservation in the Territory of Utah agricultural and grazing lands according to the treaty of 1880 (21 Stats., 200). Said section also requires the commissioners, as soon as practicable after their appointment, to report to the Secretary of the Interior what portions of the reservation are unsuited or not required for allotments, “and thereupon such portions so reported shall, by proclamation, be restored to the public domain and made subject to entry.” 117 Section 21 provides that the remainder of the lands on that reservation shall, upon the approval of the allotments by the Secretary of the Interior, be immediately opened to entry under the homestead and mineral laws of the United States. At 32. 12B. REPORT OF THESECRETARY OF THE INTERIOR H. DOC. 54th CONG., Ist SESS. VOL. 14 (1895-96) The appropriation for 1895 contained various sums, aggregating $4,017,482.85, for payments for lands purchased from Indian tribes; . . .at VII. The area of public lands undisposed of at the close of the fiscal year amounted to 599,083,495 acres. This aggregate does not include Ohio, Indiana, and Illinois, in which a few isolated tracts may remain. It is also exclusive of Alaska, containing approximately 370,000,000 acres, and military and Indian reservations, reservoir sites, and timber reserves, which may in the future be added to the public domain. At XVII. 13A.ANNUAL REPORT OF THE COMMISSIONER OF INDIAN AFFAIRS (1876) OPENING OF CEDED LANDS. The ceded lands within the Nez Perces Reservation in Idaho were opened to settlement November 18, 1895, by proclamation of the President, dated November 8, 1895. At 29. 118 COMMISSIONS. Crow, Flathead, Northern Cheyenne, Fort Hall, Uintah, and Yakima.—The Indian appropriation act for the current fiscal year authorizes the appointment by the Secretary of the Interior of a commission to consist of three persons, not more than two of whom shall be of the same political party and not more than one of whom shall be resident of any one State, to negotiate with the following Indians, viz: The Crow and Flathead Indians in Montana for the cession of portions of their respective reservations; the Northern Cheyennes and Crows for the removal of the Northern Cheyennes from their present reservation on the Rosebud River to the southern portion of the Crow Reservation; the Indians of the Fort Hall Reservation in Idaho, the Lintah Reservation in Utah, and the Yakima Reservation in Washington, for the surrender of any portions of their respective reservations, and for such modification of existing treaties with them as may be deemed desirable by the Indians and the Secretary of the Interior; any agreement thus negotiated to be subject to ratification by Congress. At 32. MINERAL ENTRIES ON THE NORTH HALF OF COLVILLE RESERVATION, WASH. By the act of Congress which became !aw without the President’s approval on July 1, 1891 (27 D’at. L., 62), it was provided that after the lands shculd have been surveyed and allotments made to the Indians who elected to remain on the north half of the Colville Reserve, that portion of the reservation should, by proclamation of the President, be restored to the pubiic domain, and be 119 disposed of under the general laws applicable to the disposition of public lands. As the required surveys havenot been completed such Executive proclamation has not yet been issued. However, the opinion has prevailed among settlers and miners in that locality that there were valuable mineral deposits, particularly of gold, in the north half of that reserve. Congress accordingly anticipated the Executive action provided for in the aforesaid act of July 1, 1891, by passing the act approved February 20, 1896 (29 Stat. L., 9), which authorized mineral locations and entries at once on that portion of the reserve. At 83. 13B. REPORT OF THE SECRETARY OF THE INTERIOR (1896) H. EXEC. DOC. 54TH CONG., 2d SESS. VOL. 12 (1896-97). The public domain is under the charge of the General Land Office, and has been since the creation of that Bureau in 1812. At V. The national domain is the whole area, land and water, lying within the national boundaries known as the United States. The public domain, or public lands—the property of the nation, and subject to legislative control and disposition by Congress alone—is the area known as public lands acquired by treaty, capture, cession by States, conquest orother acquisition, and purchase. At VL. It is also exclusive of military and Indian reservations, reservoir site and timber reservations, and tracts covered gD Ted ine 120 by selections, filings, railroad grants, andclaims as yet unadjudicated, a part of which may in the future be added to the public domain. At VII. The estimated area of all existing Indian reservations on the public domain is 84,418,562 acres, . . .at X. ‘CHLYPEWA LANDS IN MINNESOTA.— --The act of January 14, 1889 (25 Stat. L., 642), made provisions for obtaining the cession of the greater part of the reservations occupied by the Chippewa Indians in the State of Minnesota, for the examination of the ceded lands for the purpose of classifying them as either “pine” or “agricultural” lands, and for the disposition of the two classes of lands. The reservations coming within the provisions of the act are twelve in number, and the ceded portions thereof are estimated to embrace 3,500,000 acres, . . .at XX. The territory now occupied by the Indians in this country is estimated at about 85,000,000 acres, ample for their needs,. . .at XXXVL Opening of Ceded Lands.— Ceded lands within the Nez Perce’sReservation in Idaho were opened to settlement November 18, 1895, by Presidential proclamation. At XLII. COMMISSIONS. The Crow and Flathead Indians in Montana for the cession of portions of their respective reservations; the Northern Cheyennes and Crows for the removal of the Northern Cheyennes from their present reservation on the 121 Rosebud River to the southern portion of the Crow Reservation; the Indians of theFort Hall Reservation in Idaho, the Uintah Reservation in Utah, and the Yakima Reservation in Washington, for the surrender of any portions of their respective reservations, and for such modification of existing treaties with them as may be deemed desirable by the Indians and the Secretary of the Interior; any agreement thus negotiated to be subject to ratification by Congress. At XLVI & XLVII. THE UNCOMPAHGRE INDIAN RESERVATION. A commission was appointed to allot the lands, and was instructed to inform the Secretary of the Interior what portion of the Uncompahgre Reservation in Utah was not required for allotment or was unfit for agricultural uses, in order that the same might be restored to the public domain and opened for settlement. That commission was duly appointed, but had difficulty in finding sufficient agricultural lands within the reservation to make the allotments, and was totally unsuccessful in persuading the Ucompahgres to agree to pay $1.25 per acre for the same. At XLVIIL. MineraL Entries on the North Half of Colville Reservation, Wash.— The act of Congress, approved February 20, 1896 (29 Stat. L., 9), authorized mineral entries on the north half of the reserve. Subsequently complaints were entered that placer claims were being staked off on the lands which were inclosed with fence and cultivated by Indians, merely for the purpose of getting a foothold on the reservation. It was also claimed that there was very little if any mineral on the lands. A special agent of the General Land Office was directed to investigate the ee ee — ‘ a 7 122 matter, and in his report he stated that none of the lands on the northern portion of the reservation claimed and improved by Indians contained minerals in such quantities thatthey could be profitably mined, and that none of them could be classed as mineral lands. Accordingly, the register and receiver of the United States land office at Spokane, Wash., were, on the Sth of August, 1896, instructed to accept no applications to make mineral entries of any agricultural or grazing lands on the Colville Reservation which is claimed by Indians upon which they have improvements and to exercise the greatest care to protect Indian occupants of land in that reservation. At LVII-LVIIL. By the treaty of 1880 with the confederated bands of Ute Indians in Colorado the whole of their reservation in that state, containing over 10,000,000 acres, was ceded to the United States for $1,250,000, or about 12% cents per acre, which was about the price per acre received by them for the block of nearly 4,000,000 acres previously cut out ofthe reservation in the cession under what is known as the Brunot treaty of 1873; and said bands, except the Southern Utes, who were otherwise provided for, agreed to take allotments of lands in severalty, paying for the same $1.25 per acre, on the Grand River near the mouth of the Gunnison, if a sufficiency of land for the purpose could be had there; if not, the residue were to be supplied with lands at the stipulated price over the line in Utah. At CXLVI. 14A.REPORT OF COMMISSIONER OF INDIAN AFFAIRS (1897) ANNUAL REPORTS OF THE DEPARTMENT OF INTERIOR (1897) 123 NEGOTIATIONS WITH INDIAN TRIBES. Shoshone Reservation, Wyoming; Big Horn or Owl Creek Hot Springs.— At 34. The lands in the vicinity ofthe springs, although very picturesque, are of little value, being broken, rugged, and arid. It was therefore decided to secure, if possible, the cession of a considerable tract, with a view to establishing a national park or reservation in connection with the springs, and the inspector was instructed to negotiate, should the Indians be found willing to cede, for a tract about 10 miles square, constituting the northeastern portion of the reservation... . April 21, 1896, Inspector McLaughlin reached an agreement with the Indians, by the terms of which they ceded the tract just described, estimated to contain about 86 sections (55,040 acres). At 35. As stated in the last annual report of this office, bills were introduced during the first session of the last Congress having in view a more stringent and unequivocal restriction of the sale of liquors to Indians; especially to include among those with whom the traffic is prohibited Indians who have been given allotments in severalty and have been made citizens of the United States, but who remain for a time under the guardianship and care of the Government; also to extend the prohibition against the introduction of intoxicating liquors into theIndian country so as to make it cover allotted lands which are held in trust by the United States or that are held by the Indians without the right of alienation. The act, approved by the President January 30, 1897 (29 Stat., 506), is of unusual a ee ee : 124 importance to the service, and sets at rest questions on which thecourts of the different districts could not agree, namely, whether the law applied to punish parties who introduced intoxicating liquors within an Indian allotment or who furnished them to an Indian allottee. I therefore deem it expedient to quote the law in full, as follows: at 56. The portions of the Blackfeet and Fort Belknap reservations ceded by the agreements of September 26, 1895, and October 9, 1895, respectively, and ratified by the act of June 10, 1896, have not yet been opened to settlement. The survey of the ceded portion of theFort Belknap Reservation has been completed and the work of surveying the Blackfeet boundary is now in progress. At 80. a SIR: In compliance with your instructions, | have the honor to submit this my first annual report for the fiscal year ending June 30, 1897 I assumed charge of this agency on the Ist day of July, 1897, and owing to the short time I have been here my report will necessarily be brief, relating facts and conditions coming under my general observation. 1 am frank im saying that | was very much surprised to find that the affairs at this agency have been carried on apparently in an unbusinesslike manner. The buildings at the agency and school have the appearance of willful neglect; not a building on the agency but what leaks during an ordinary shower. It has been necessary since my arrival here to cause a great deal of valuable time to be taken up in removing the debris and refuse from the premises in order to better the sanitary conditions of the surroundings. The agency is beautifully located upon a tract of land 130 acres and situated on the eastern slope of the Coteau Hills. This small tract 14B. REPORT OF THE SECRETARY OF THE INTERIOR H. EXEC. DOC. 55TH CONG., 2D SESS. (1897-98) NEGOTIATIONS WITH INDIAN TRIBES. By an item in the 125 current Indian appropriation act, Congress ratified the agreement of April 21, 1896, with the Indians of the Wind River Reserve, Wyo., by which they ceded to the United States a 10-mile square tract constituting the northeastern portion of their reservation. At the same time Congress transferred to the State of Wyoming a square mile of the ceded tract, which contained the Big Horn Hot Springs, and provided that the remainder should become a part of the public domain. A commission has been negotiating for cessions of land with the Indians of the Fort Hall, Idaho, and Yakima, Wash,. reservations, but has concluded no agreements. At XXIX. Sale of Liquor to Indians.— By the act of January 30, 1897, it was made unlawful to dispose of intoxicating drinks of any kind in any way to any Indian who is under the charge of an Indian agent, or under the guardianship of the Government, or who has received an allotment of land to which the Government still holds the trust title. At XXXIII-XXXIV. Blackfeet and Fort Belknap Reserves, Mont.— The portions of the Blackfeet and Fort Belknap reservations ceded by the agreements of September 26, 1895, and October 9, 1895, respectively, and ratified by the act of June 10, 1896, havenot yet been opened to settlement. The survey of the ceded portion of the Fort Belknap Reservation has been completed and the work of surveying the Blackfeet boundary is now in progress. At XXXVIIL. ISA REPORT OF THE COMMISSIONER OF INDIAN AFFAIRS. (1898). 126 COMMISSIONS. At XXVIII. February 5, 1898, the commission submitted to the Department an agreement made with the Indians residing on the Fort Hall Reservation, Idaho, for the cession of a portion of their surplus lands. The commission also concluded an agreement with the Uintah and White River Utes by which they sold, ceded, and relinquished to the United States necessary lands for the use of such of the Uncompahgre Utes as might conclude to remove to the Uintah Reservation. At 34. Uintah Commission.— July 14, 1898, Messrs. Erastus R. Harper, Ross Guffin, and Howell P. Myton, members of the Uncompahgre Commission, were appointed commissioners to allot lands to Indians upon the Uintah Reservation in Utah, and to negotiate for the cession of the lands remainig unallotted under the provisions of the act of June 4, 1898 (30 Stats., p. 429). At 36. Colville Reservation, Wash.—Kettle River Valley Railway Company.— By act of Congress of June 18, 1898 (30 Stats, 475, and p. 423 of this report), the above-named company was granted right of way through the north half of the Colville Reservation, subject to the provisions of the act of Congress of March 3, 1875 (18 Stats., 482). At 63. Sioux Reservation, S. Dak.—Chicago, Milwaukee and St. Paul Railway Company.—By act of Congress of June 25, 1898 (30 Stats., 748), the Secretary of the Interior is authorized and directed to return and refund to the 127 above-named company the sum of $15,335.76, deposited by the company with this Department in payment for right of way and depot grounds through certain lands which were afterwards ceded to the United States, and which lands the company claimed that it had never secured or used. At 67. TURTLE MOUNTAIN CHIPPEWAS, NORTH DAKOTA. A bill (House 9282) was introduced during the last session of Congress referring to the Court of Claims the claim of these Indians for payment for about 9,000,000 acres in North Dakota which they declars have never been ceded by them. At 96. BOUNDARY OF KLAMATH RESERVATION, OREG. July 15, 1898, I recommended that the Commissioner of the General Land Office be instructed to cause the boundary lines of the reservation to be surveyed in accordance with the provisions of the treaty of October 14, 1864, as ascertained by the commission named above. I also recommended that the deputy surveyor be instructed not to establish any permanent monuments except such as may be necessary to replace those that have been obliterated on that portion of the est. blished line which coincides with the line determined by the commission. The lands outside the established boundaries have been opened to public settlement and entry, and to a considerable extent are occupied by settlers who have acquired title. Therefore permanent monuments on that part of the line which does notcoincidewith the established 128 boundary would be worthless and confusing. It is not proposed to disposses these settlers, who are in no way at fault, but to compensate the Indians for thelands lying between the boundaries established by the approved but erroneous survey, and those determined by the commission to be the correct boundaries intended by the treaty. The only possible object in surveying the latter boundaries is to ascertain the correct area of the lands erroneously excluded from the reservation. At 104 & 105. 15B. REPORT OF THE SECRETARY OF THE INTERIOR H. EXEC. DOC., SSTH CONG., 3d SESS. (1898-99). COMMISSIONS. At XXVIII. THE CHIPPEWA INDIANS OF MINNESOTA. The act of Congress approved January 14, 1889 (25 Stat. L., 642) entitled “An act for the relief and civilization of the Chippewa Indians in the State of Minnesota,” provides for the appointment of a commission to negotiate with the different bands or tribes of Chippewa Indians in Minnesota for the complete cession of all these reservations in Minnesota, except the White Earth and Red Lake reservations and of so much of the latter as is not required for allotments to the Indians; . . at XXXI. UNCOMPAHGRE AND UINTAH INDIANS AND COMMISSIONS. In preparation for the opening of the Uncompahgre Reservation to settlement, Congress directed that the Uncompahgres should receive allotments so far as possible on their own reservation, and the remainder on the 129 adjoining Uintah Reservation or elsewhere in the State of Utah. At XXXVIL. Indian Territory under the Curtis Act.— On June 28, 1898, there was approved an act of Congress entitled, “An act for the protection of the people of the Indian Territory, and for other purposes.” (30 Stat., 495.) This legislation made many material and radical changes in the relations of the several tribes of Indians in the Indian Territory to the Government ofthe United States. The first ten sections of said act relate to civil and criminal proceedings in the United States courts for said Territory regarding the rights of those claiming m.ombership in the Five Civilized Tribes, and also granting to noncitizens certain privileges in respect of a certain amount of land in their possession under agreement with either of said tribes, or any citizen thereof, made prior to January |, 1898. At XXXIX. Irrigation. —When the work is completed the Indianscan receive allotments, and will doubtless be willing to cede part of their reserve. At XLVI & XLVII. 16A.ANNUAL REPORT OF THE COMMISSIONER OF INDIAN AFFAIRS (1898-1899) The reservation system of the United States was the necessary outcome of conditions prevailing between the whites and Indians in the settlement and development of the country. The Government was forced to deal with large bandsof Indians who were gradually driven back as the borders of civilization were extended, while the busy hum of industry began to be heard where all had been 130 stillness under the ownership of this people. Angry and revengeful, their predatory attacks were inimical to the best interests of the settlers; therefore two alternatives Presented themselves—extermination or absolute control. Humanitarian principles prevailed, and the latter was accepted. Hence as a matter of military and commercial necessity the Indians were placed upon tracts of land reserved and set apart for their benefit, where they could be at all times under proper and efficient surveillance. Deprived in course of time of the game upon which they had formerly subsisted, the Government gave freely for their support. Such assistance was not intended as a perpetual mortgage upon their own exertions, but just so soon as the tribes ceased to be formidable it was and is the policy that they must begin to rely upon their own labors, being forced to understand that those who eat must also work. The reservation was not intended as a place where these savages could be merely disarmed, nor to surround them with a wall to be built each year higher and higher by their own pauperism and idleness, forever to debar them from active participation in the duties of life and citizenship; nor were they to be permitted to wander as vagabonds, gypsy-like, over the country, a nuisance to the people and themselves, dependent upon public charity. Fitted neither by heredity nor education to be the architects of their own destiny through the medium of manual labor, as all such people must be, it was necessary that they should be placed upon these reservations, not for the purpose of forming or re-forming the gnarled and knotted character of the old Indian seasoned by generations of warfare and antagonism, but to prevent him from interfering while the Government could secure the necessary time to mold the individualism of his children under the enlightened influence of schools established for 131 their benefit. When this result has been accomplished the necessity for Indian reservations will cease. It is therefore essential that the education of the present generation of young Indians shall be along this line, which will prepare them to take and properly appreciate their share of the common land belonging to themselves and parents when the same is allotted in severalty. This being the goal, the danger in the system lies in its being delayed too long. While it is true the best and most permanent results are only looked for from the education of the young, yet the older ones can not be neglected, so the gospel of work is preached to parents as well as to their children. At 6-7. COMMISSIONS. An agreement was concluded on August 14, 1899, with the Indians of the Crow Reservation by the terms of which they cede to the United States the noithern portion of their reserve, estimated to contain |,! 37,500 acres, for which $1,150,000 is to be paid, or about $1.03 per acre. Of the tract ceded the commission says 21,000 acres should be deducted to cover railroad rights of way and present allotments, thus leaving the net acreage ceded 1,116,500. Of the latter area 200,000 acres, lying along the Big Horn and Yellowstone rivers, are said to be susceptible of irrigation, the balance being excellent grazing land and containing some timber. The agreement provides for the use of about one-half thepurchase money for the completionand maintenance of the irrigation system; for the purchase of stock cattle and sheep; for a hospital and its maintenance; for schools; for 132 fencing the reservation; for mills, etc. The balance of the principal sum is to be placed in the Treasury of the United States as a trust fund, the same to bear interest at the rate of 4 per cent per annum, such interest to be added to the principal each year. A cash annuity payment of $12 per capita is to be made to all the Indians having rights on the reservation. The agreement must, of course, be ratified and confirmed by Congress before it becomes effective. As stated in my last report, this commission, which has been in the field continuously since its appointment, August 31, 1896, concluded two agreements last year—one with the Indians of the Fort Hall Reservation, Idaho, dated February 5, 1898, providing for a cession of a portion of their reservation to the United States, and one with the Indians of the Uintah Reservation in Utah, dated January 8, 1898, providing forthe cession of lands for allotments to the Uncompahgre Utes. Both of these agreements were transmitted to Congress, with recommendation for favorable action, but neither of them has yet been ratified. At 32-33. June 24, August 31, and October 31, 1898, the Uncompahgre commission submitted to this office schedules of 295 allotments made to the Uncompahgre Indians. Each of these schedules embraced allotments on both the Uncompahgre and Uintah reservations; but only one schedule was rendered in duplicate. By the act of June 7, 1897 (30 Stats., 62), all the lands in the Uncompahgre Reservation remaining unallotted on Apirl 1, 1898, became open on that date for 133 location and entry. But none of the allotments on that reservation had been made prior to that date. Therefore, by the act of March 1, 1899 (30 Stats., 924), the Secretary of the Interior was authorized, in his discretion, to approve 83 allotments made to the Uncompahgres within the former Uncompahgre Reservation in Utah after April |, 1898, and to issue patents therefor, as provided by existing law. At 43-44. Colville Reservation, Wash.—October 11, 1898, instructions for the guidance of Harry Humphrey, who had been appointed a special agent to make allotments on the north half of the Colville Reservation, under the act of July 1, 1892 (27 Stats., 62), were submitteu to theDepartment. They were approved October 12, 1898, and shortly afterwards he entered upon duty. September 30, 1899, he reported that he had made 264 allotments. At 45. Quapaw Reservation, Ind. T.— One farming lease for the period of one year. The consideration is $2 per acre. Round Valley Agency, Cal.— One farming and grazing lease has been executed upon which no action has been taken. Sac and Fox Agency, Okla.—Thirty-two farming and grazing leases by the Absentee Shawnee allottees, 23 by the Pottawatomies, 44 by the Sacs and Foxes, 17 by the lowas, and 25 by the Kickapoos; also six residence and business leases by the Sac and Fox Indians. The length of term is from one to three years. Theconsideration ranges from 17 cents per acre per annum for grazing lands to $3 for the best farming lands. The average price for raw, 134 unbroken lands is about 75 cents per acre. In the majority of cases the lessees are to place certain small inprovements on the lands, such as fences, etc. The residence and business leases are for the term of one year. The consideration is $10 for 50 by 150 square feet. Eight leases have been executed upon which no action has been taken. Siletz Reservation, Oreg.— Two grazing leases. The terms areone and three years. The consideration is 79 and 41 cents per acre per annum, respectively. Sisseton Agency, S. Dak.—Forty-nine farming and grazing leases. The term is three years. The consideration ranges from 1° cents to 93 cents per acre per annum. Umatilla Agency, Oreg.—Forty-one farming and grazing leases—21 by the Cayuse, 14 by the Walla Walla, and 6 by the Umatilla allottees. The terms are from one to three years. The consideration ranges from 70 cents to $2.68 per acre per annum. Yakima Agency, Wash.— Nine farming and grazing leases for the term of three years. The consideration ranges from $1 to $1.75 per acre per annum. Yankton Agency, S. Dak.—One hundred and forty-five grazing leases for the term of three years. The consideration paid for grazing lands at this agency is low, generally 10 cents per acre per annum, but some few pieces are leased for 12% and 15 cents. At 59. The most important matter of legislation during the past year in connection with railroads across Indian lands was the passage of the act of Congress of March 2, 1899 135 (30 Stat., 990, and p. 505 of this report). The act provides that any railway company duly organized under the laws of the United States or under the laws of any State or Territory, may acquire right of way through Indian reservations, Indian lands, and Indian allotments by complying with its terms and with the rules and regulation of this Department prescribed thereunder. At 63. Colville Reservation, Wash.—Washington Improvement and Development Company.—By act of Congress approved June 4, 1898 (30 Stats., 430), the above-named company was granted right of way through the Colville Reservation, beginning at a point on the Columbia River near the mouth of Sans Poil River; running thence in a northerly direction to a point in township 37 north, of range 32 east, Williamette meridian; thence northerly to a point near the mouth of Curlew Creek; thence northerly to the international boundary line between British Columbia and the State of Washington, subject to the usual conditions. Three maps of definite location of the company’s line of road through said reservation, commencing at the southerly end of Curlew Lake and extending in a general southerly end of Curlew Lake and extending in a general southerly direction to the Columbia River near the mouth of Sans Poil River, have been approved by the Department. At 74. NEEDED PUBLICATIONS ON INDIAN MATTERS. For many years there has been an increasing demand upon this office for a publication containing all ratified treaties and agreements made between the various Indian tribes and the United States. Such a work would be very ee ee ee | ie ae eae 136 valuable for reference by the Executive Departments of the Government, by the Indian committees in Congress when considering legislation affecting Indian tribes, and also by the several Indian tribes themselves, who are yearly becoming more intelligent and desirous of obtaining information as to what lands their forefathers occupied and claimed, and how and when they were ceded to the Government. At 75. BOUNDARY OF KALMATH RESERVATION, OREG. By a clause in the Indian appropriation act of July 1, 1898 (30 Stat., 592), Congress provided for a resurvey of the exterior boundaries of the reservation in accordance with the treaty, and directed the Secretary of the Interior to negotiate with the Indians through an Indian inspector for the relinquishment of their right and interest in a portion of the reservation, and also to ascertain what portion of the reservation is occupied by citizens of the United States, for what purpose and under what title. Indian Inspector W.J. McConnell, who was charged with these duties, concluded an agreement with the Indians December 27, 1898. By that agreement the Indians convey to the United States all their claim to that part of the Klamath Reservation lying between the boundaries as described in the treaty, which were also confirmed by the Klamath boundary commissioners, and the boundaries established by the survey made in 1871 under the authority of the General Land Office, approximating 617,490 acres. 16B. 137 The United States agrees, in consideration of said cession, to pay the Indians the sum of $533,270, or 86.36 cents per acre for the quantity of land that may be found by the resurvey to be within said boundaries. This amount, more or less, after payment of the legal fees of attorneys, is to be deposited in the Treasury of the United States, and interest thereon at the rate of 5 per cent per annum to be paid the Indians annually per capita. At 138 & 139. REPORT OF THE SECRETARY OF THE INTERIOR, EXEC. DOC. 56TH CONG., 1ST SESS. (1899-1900). The entire educational system of the Indian Bureau contemplates the ultimate abolishing of Indian reservations. At. XXVII. Allotment work is being pushed on the Colville Reservation, Wash. At XXXII. RAILROADS ACROSS RESERVATIONS. Authority for railroad lines has been granted by the Department as follows:...Chicago, Milwaukee, and St. Paul Railroad, through Yankton Reservation. At XXXIV. Needed Publication on Indian Matters.—For many years therehas been an increasing demand for a publication containing all ratified treaties and agreements made between the various Indian tribes and the United States. Such a work would be very valuable for reference by the Executive Departments of the Government, by the Indian committees in Congress when considering legislation affecting Indian tribes, and also by the several Indian tribes themselves, who are yearly becoming more intelligent and ee end 40e aoee 138 desirous of obtaining information as to what lands their forefathers occupied and claimed and how and when they were ceded to the Government. At XXXV. Boundary of Klamath Reservation, Oreg.—By an erroneous survey of the outboundaries a large area was excluded from the Klamath Reservation as established by the treaty of 1874, and upon this tract white families have settled. Against this wrong the Indians have continuously protested. Finally, a commission to investigate was authorized by Congress in 1896, whose findings gave the excluded area as 617,490 acres, valued at 86.36 cents per acre, or $533,270. In the Indian appropriation act of July 1, 1898, Congress authorized a resurvey and negotiations with the Indians for the cession of a portion of their reservation. An agreement was concluded with them December 27, 1898, in which they surrendered this tract, approximating 617,490 acres, for 86.36 cents per acre, the exact amount to be determined by resurvey. At XLVII. 17A.REPORT OF THE COMMISSIONER OF INDIAN AFFAIRS. H. EXEC. DOC. 56th CONG., 2d SESS. (1900-01 ). Of the 45,270 receiving daily rations from the Goverument, 17,876, or nearly two-fifths, belong to the great Sioux Nation, known as the Sioux of different tribes, located in North and South Dakota. These Indians are not included in the foregoing list, as their case is different from the others in that the rations and the conditions under which they are to be given are specifically named in the agreement of 1876, ratified by the act of February 28, 139 1877. That agreement, in consideration of the cession of certain territory and rights, obligates the United States to provide the Indians with subsistence consisting of a ration for each individual ;... at 6. NONRESERVATION ALLOTMENTS. Washington.— Special Allotting Agent William E. Casson was engaged in allotment work on the north half of the Colville Reservation fromJuly, 1899, until early in January of the present year. At 56. Yankton Sioux Indian Lands, South Dakota.—Chicago, Milwaukee and St. Paul Railway Company. October 17, 1899, the Department approved thecompany’s map of definite location of its line of road through the allotted lands of the Indians of the former Yankton Reservation, S. Dak. September 8, preceding the approval of the map, the Department designated Agent Harding of the Yankton Agency to act with and for the allottees in negotiating amicable settlements with the company for right of way through their respective allotments. November 28, 1899, the Department approved the schedule of damages for right of way through the lands of the Indians as assessed by Agent Harding. At 100-101. Colville Reservation, Wash.—Washington Improvement and Development Company.— Mention is made in the last annual report of the approval by the Department of three maps of definite location ofthe company’s line of road through said reservation, commencing at the southerly end of Curlew Lake and extending in a general southerly direction to the Columbia River, near the mouth of Sans Poil River. November 27, 140 1899, the Department approved two maps of definite location showing the remainder of the line of the road through the Colville Reservation. The line of road as shown upon said maps commences at the southerly end of Curlew Lake and extends in a general northerly and northwesterly direction to the international boundary line between the United States and British Columbia, a distance of 30.98 miles. No action has been taken in the matter of settlement of damages for right of way of the company through the reservation. At 101. RATIFICATION OF FORT HALL AGREEMENT. June 6, 1900 (31 Stats., 672), Congress ratified the agreement entered into with the Indians of the Fort Hall Reservation, Idaho, by the Crow, Flathead, etc., Commission, on February 5, 1898. By the terms of that agreement about 400,000 acres of land are ceded to the United States, in consideration for which the Indians are to receive $600,000, of which $75,000 is to he expended by the Secretary of the Interior in the er-ction of a modern school plant, and the balance is to be paid to them in ten annual installments—the first one to be $100,000, the next eight $50,000 each, and the last $25,000. The first installment of $100,000 is now being paid to the Indians, the agent being assisted in making the same by Special Agent Samuel L. Taggart. Article 3 of the agreement provided thatthe Indians who reside on the lands ceded might remain thereon and receive allotments of the lands occupied and improved by them, or remove to the diminished reservation, as they might elect. Section 4 of the act ratifying the agreement 141 provides that before any of the lands ceded shall be thrown open to settlement the Commissioner of Indians Affairs shall cause allotments to be made to the Indians who may desire them. Where Indians prefer to remove within the limits of the reduced reservation, it provides that the Commissioner of Indian Affairs shall cause a schedule of the lands abandoned to be prepared, giving a description of the improvements and the names of the Indian occupants, and before any entry shall be allowed of the lands so scheduled the Secretary of the Interior shall cause the improvements thereon to be appraised and sold to the highest bidder, no sale to be for less than the appraised value. The purchaser of such improvements is to have a preference right of thirty days within which to make an entry of the lands upon which the improvements purchased are located. The work of making the allotments has been assigned to the United States Indian agent for the Fort Hall Agency, A.F. Caldwell, and he is now engaged in making them in compliance with instructions dated July 11, 1900, and August 15, 1900. United States Indian Inspector WJ. McConnell has been detailed to make the appraisement of the improvements on the ceded lands of the Indians who elect to remove to the diminished reservation. At 102-103. 7B. REPORT OF THE SECRETARY OF THE INTERIOR, ANNUAL REPORT OF THE DEPARTMENT OF INTERIOR (1900). The Puyallup commission has, under authority contained in the act of May 31, 1900, continued to superintend the sales of lands on the Puyallup Reservation, which consists of allotted lands and an agency tract. At oe ery 142 xIX. Allotments have been approved by the Department as follows: Ratification of Fort Hall Agreement.— This agreement concluded with a commission February 5, 1898; was ratified by Congress at its last session. The Indians ceded 400,000 acres for $600,000—$75,000 to be used for a new school plant and the balance to be paid in ten annual installments, first one to be $100,000, the next eight $50,000 each, and the last $25,000, Indians residing on the ceded lands having the option of taking allotments or lands they have lived upon or improved, or upon the reservation. The improvements abandoned by those who remove to the reservation are to be appraised and sold for not less than the appraised value. The payment of the first installment of $100,000 is now being made, and the work of allotting and appraising is in progress. At XXVI-XXVIL. THE OPENING OF THE NORTH HALF OF THE COLVILLE INDIAN RESERVATION The act of July }, 1892 (27 Stat., 62), entitled “An act providing for the opening of a part of the Colville Reservation in the State of Washington, and for other purposes,” vacated and restored to the public domain a portion of the Colville Indian Reservation created by Executive order, dated July 2, 1872, and by other proceedings, whereby the same was set apart for a 143 reservation for any Indians or band of Indians, and provided that the same should be opened to settlement and entry by the proclamation of thePresident of the United States and should be disposed of under the general laws applicable to the disposition of public lands in the State of Washington. It was alsc provided by said act that every Indian then residing upon the portion of said reservation vacated and restored to the public domain, and who was entitled to reside thereon, shou!~ be entitled to select from said vacated portion 80 acres of land, which should be allotted to each Indian in severalty,and that no restrictions as to locality should be placed upon such selections further than that they should be so located as to conform to the authorized survey or subdivisions of said tract of country, and that an Indian having improvements should have preference over any other person in and upon the tract of land containing such improvements, so far as they were within a legal subdivision not exceeding in area the quantity of land that he or she might be entitled to select and locate, and that such selections should bemade within six months after the date of the President’s proclamation opening the lands so vacated to settlement and entry, and after the same had been surveyed, and when such allotments had been selected and approved by the Secretary of the Interior, the title thereto should be held in trust for the benefit of the allottees, respectively, and afterwards conveyed in fee simple to the allottees or their heirs, as provided under the general allotment act approved February 8, 1887, and the act amendatory thereof, approved February 28, 1891, and providing that such allotted lands should be subject to the laws of eminent domain of the State of Washington, and should only 144 convey in fee simple to the allottees or their heirs, and be subject to taxation as other property in that State. On the 20th day of February, 1896, the United S [Text truncated at 120,000 characters. The full text is on the page linked above.] --- Source: Frix Law Library, https://www.frixlaw.com/law-library/documents/brief%3Amicro_IA40385003_0055%3A03. Public record. Not legal advice.