Pittsburg dispatch. [volume] (Pittsburg [Pa.]) 1880-1923, 1891-09-20

Inhabitants in the United States. The
houses back Of the main OF business street
have big grounds, and some of them are
eight and ten-room cottages Only q few
of the houses are built of logs and the most
Of them are of boards and some are after the
models furnished in books of suburban
architecture.
The Capitol contains the legislative halls,
the Treasury Department, the Supreme
Court and the Department of Education. I
visited it to-day, and 1 found the Treasury
much like a country bank, consisting Of q
counter running across 10x12 room. Iron
bars ran from the front ofthe counter to the
ceiling, and in the space behind there was
Q safe and an Indian who talked to me
through little hole over the center of the
counter.
A TALK WITH THE CHIEF
The Legislature was not in session, but I
took look into the halls and called upon
Nr Mays, who has for two terms served as
Chief of the Cherokees. found him in his
executive chamber on the second floor of
the Capitol. BE is big, broad-shouldered
man with big head and an intelligent face
In which few signs of Indian blood are to be
seen. His hair is dark brown, and the lower
half Of his face is covered with short
brown beard. He was dressed in citizens
clothes and his talk was in as good English
and as full of ideas as that of the average
American Congressman.
He has been Supreme Judge of the ma
tion for years, and he is a very intelligent
man. He has fine farm not far off from
Tahlequah and he cultivates the soil after as
scientific methods as those which prevail on
the estate Of Uncle Jerry Rusk in the gar
Gen Of Wisconsin. During my talk with
him the question of the Cherokee strip came
ne TOl ma hot
that this valuable piece of land would
eventually be sold, and he evidently
thought that the Indians ought to be allow
ed to sell 1t to the highest bidder. Said he;
OFFERS FOR THE STRIP.
This strip contains over 6,00O, 900 acres
and these are as fine lands as exist in the
United States. Il lies north of Okiohoma
and west Of the Osages and it is well water
ed and valuable. have received a number
Of offers for it since have been chief, and
q Kansas City firm would have given us
$50, 900, 600 for II. Another party offered US
S20, 600, coo, and third offer which we have
had was 81, 100000. We may have to sell
II TO the United States, but if we do we
ought to get fair price for it"
This strip has nothing to do with this
part of the Territory. The nation owns
some of the finest lands of the United States
ritory, and from the stage rides which 1
have taken through this country / Judge |
that not more than one-tenth of il is culti- |
waited Still it II seems to be rich, I rode |
from Muskogee, the biggest town of the |
Greek nation, to the Arkansas river, which |
we forded, and thence came on to Fort |
Gibson and by another stage down here to |
Tshlequah. Along the whole way the soil |
was fertile. There were great plains cov- |
cred with luKuriant grass, and the ride was |
more like one through
wELL-KEPT ENGLISH PARK
than through a half-settled Indian reserva- |
ton 1t is the same throughout these civil |
lied nations. The Missouri, Kansas and |
Texas Railroad passes through four of them |
and this is the best road for visiting the In |
dian Territory. All along it from Texas to |
Kansas you see rich farms, fat cattle and |
there are number of very fair towns, the |
biggest of which is Muskogee, with Z, 900 peo-
PIE. You see also great stretches OF unoccu-
pied land, and these Indian nations have
curious regulations in regard to their lands
Every Cherokee has the right b as much
isnd as he can use, and he can hold all the
land he fences in, provided he cultivates 1t.
he mas also the right to a quarter of mile
oi Land Tor grazing outside the fences all
around his farm, and some of these Indians
nave big estates. The farms here range all
the way from 100 acres to 16, 600 acres, and
many OF the farms are managed by white
men, who get IN here by marrying Cherokee
wives. There are about %, 900 Cherokees,