St. Paul daily globe. [volume] (Saint Paul, Minn.) 1884-1896, 1889-07-23
INDIANS WANT LIGHT.
Ten Questions Concerning the
Dawes Bill to Be Asked a st.
Paul ATTORNEY

Dawes Bill to Be Asked a st.
Paul Attorney.
Special to the Globe.
WHITE EARTH, July 22.-The So
called Nelson bill still hangs fire with
the Indians, and the probability is that
no signing will be had on the part of the
Indians before Wednesday of this week,
if as soon as that. On Saturday the OPP
position to the bill was openly an
nounced by one of the government
farmers taking the lead of those in OPP
position.
The ground taken was that they did
not understand the bill, and they pro-
pounded number of questions; and in
order to have the opinion of some legal
mind outside of the commission. they
had number of these written down.
and have sent Gus Beaulien to st. Paul
to submit them to a lawyer there, and
to have him bring back written
answer to be submitted on his return to
the Indians. Among the questions are
the following:
II two-thirds of the Mississippi In
dians (the name applied to the White
Earth lndians) refuse to accept the bill,
would the consent of two-thirdS of all
the Chippewas of this state override
them, aud would the bill become law?
If a mixed-bIood Indian who has
never resided with his tribe, but whose
mother was a full-blOod Indian woman,
claims right to an allotment of land
and other tribal rights upon the reSer-
walton occupied by the tribe of which
his mother was member, can the other
members of the tribe, or the United
States commissioners, exclude him
from being a participant of the pro-
visions of the bill?
Can the Chippewas living on no leser-
vation sign the bill, and what is their
status in reference to the bill?
Are the allotments to be made in &C
cordanee with the provisions of the
Dawes bill, and do the provisions of
that bill govern the Minnesota Indians?
What proportion or quantity of pine
must forty-acre tract contain to be
claSsed as "pine land" and if there is
other valuable timber-to- wit, cedar on
the so-called pine lands-is that to be
taken into account in the appraisal?
And what class of lands will cedar
swamps be included in?
If, after pine lands have been sold,
and it could be shown that the APP
praisals were far below just estimate,
can the secretary of the interior annul
the sales?
Will more than one public sale of
land be made?
What does the provision in the bill
mean, providing that ''subsisting, valid
presumption or homestead entries" shall
be held good, have reference to?
If the Indians consent to this bill,
how soon thereafter will they get any
money?
What are grazing lands, as defined
by the Dawes bill. and are there any
such lands on the White Earth reserva-
ton?
Upon receipt Of satisfactory answers
to these queries. it Is expected that the
signing of the bill will begin, and posi-
bly, they may conclude not to wait
longer. The commission have managed
matters admirably, and have shown
that they were possessed of an mex
haustible stock of patience.
One of the well-grounded complaints
of the Indians is that there is over $780,
900 of money belonging to them that the
government still retains. and no pro-
vision is made in this bill for its pay
ment. 1t is difficult for the commission
to satisfy them that this will be paid to
them outside of the amounts provided
in the present bill,