Indian chieftain. [volume] (Vinita, Indian Territory [Okla.]) 1882-1902, 1886-03-18
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Instead Of $500, 900 had congress
appropriated every cent due under
appraisemcnt for western lands,
would tho action Of council been
different to what it was7 Would
millions Of dollars go unsettled the
minds Of our council and executive,
as did the s3O0,0O0, that in the
eogcr attainment of such n crazy
inspiring amount, they would have
forgotten all precautionary meas
urcs, and went headloAg into a
matter they were too dazed to ex-
anime carefully2 Had the council
differed as to the propriety Of nc
cepting the amount, as they did be-
cause of the peculiar wording of
the act of congress making the
appropriation, would they have
called on Phillips, as they did,
placing him away above the plain
import Of the law, for an explana-
ton, and having accepted it as dead
certainty went pell-mell into an en-
actment of a law that bound and
binds yet the nation to the condi-
tions Of the appropriation as offered
by congress? Had over s3,000,000
instead Of $500, 900 been appropri-
ated out of funds due under APP
praisement for Cherokee lands west
Of the Arkansas river, would the
council and the executive been
more deliberate, and in order to
have protected the nation against
mistakes or false representations
that might exist as to thc full and
unmistakable intent of the act
making the appropriation, have by
legislative enactment forbade the
acceptance of the amount, unless
for lands at a price fixed agreeably
to the terms of the treaty2 Having
accepted this bewildering mount
with the plain provision, that "he
who ran might read," that it was
out Of funds due under appraise-
ment for lands west of the Arkan-
sas river, and at 47.49 cents per
acre, there never having been but
one appraisement, would they have
disposed of the money as they did,
and appropriated z 1-2 per cent. or
s225,000 for unknown parties in
Washington city who were too
ashamed of their disreputable SER
vices TO permit their names to ap-
pear in the act of council setting
aside the amount for their benefit?
The blank parties should have re-
maincd blank forever rather than
to have been filled to the dishonor
of our nation.
If $500, 1000 could have tempted
our authorities, reconciled to the
act by the representations of Phil
lips, to have legislated as they did
about the amount, to what extremes
oflegislation SO, 600, 600 would have
led them? Can anyone suppose
that things would have been differ
ent? Could they make the same
plea they do now, that the lands
were not appraised according to
the treaty, and that the whole
amount was for the occupied tracts?
A proposition was certainly made
to sell the whole as intimated in
Teller's letter, and as far as the
two sums and the council and ex-
ecutive are concerned there would
have been no difference as to ac-
ton, because the inducements TO
do as they did do would have been
ten fold greater. The zeal Of Phil
lips would have gone up to a red
heat, and his efforts have been IT,
tanic in securing his seven and a
half per cent, and his denunciation
against an amendment to protect
the nation against his representa-
tions should they be false, as was
proposed to the bill authorizing
the execution Of conveyances, would
have been awfully tragic. The
dudgeon of Teller, as he represent
cd, at such an exhibition of disre-
spect would have been sublime and
terrific as a storm OF the tropics.
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ANSWER TO ADAIR.