The free press. (Poplarville, Miss.) 1890-19??, 1893-03-23
FIVE CIVILIZED TRIBES.
INDIANS WHO HAVE LEARNED
THE WHITE MANS LESSONS.
White Men Getting Head Rights" by
Marrying Indian Gtrls--The In
dian Form of Government.

White Men Getting "HeadRights" by
Marrying Indian Giris--The In
dian form, of Government.
a YNCLE SAM has proteftcd the
civilized tribes of the Indian
l Territory longer than he ever
did any other Indian landhod-
ers-very much longer than any one
thirty years ago ever thought he would.
Their area has been pared down on every
side, wherever an excuse could be made
by loose or broad, strict or latitudinarian
construction of laws and treaties, and
still the five Nations owns some 90,
600, 900 acres of land, or about $4,000
square miles.
And there are certainly not more than
65, 900 to hold it, including people Of
all colors. Just how many of the o.,
900 are -blooded Indians it would be
hard to say. TAe traveller along the
main roads get the impression that they
are not as one in ten, even in district
where they have majority.
Big coal mining companies, big cattle
companies and big '.citizens" of the
Nations who have been able to fence in
large tracts practically own more than
half of it. And most of these ''citl-
zens" are white, or nearly SO, for all the
Nations, the Caerokees especially. haze
been absorbing white blood ever since
they were discovered. OF late years
hundreds or thousands of enterprisiug
Young men from the adjacent States
have married Indian girls to get "head
rights" in some Nation and chance at
the land. In the Chicksaw Nation these
people are known by the fat title OF
sssquaw men," but the other Nations,
more civilized, call them ''adopted citi-
zens.n These and the descendents of
men like these make up. the majority OF
the citizens of the five Nations.
But among the Cherokees there is a
far more honorable white ancestry.
White missionaries settled in the tribe
early in sthe Eighteenth Century, and
" hite children taken in war were adop-
ted. When the Revolutionary War closed
the best class of the Tories in the Caro-
linas gathered up their movables, crossed
the mountains and located among the
Cherokees in upper Georgia. Hence the
| prevalence of Scotch names in that tribe.
! One reads of Indian Legislatures, and
when he reaches Tahiequah or Atoka it
gives him ''quite q turn tcysee a man
as white as Tom Reed welding the
Speakers gavel. John Ross was by faI
the most noted Cherokee Of his time.
He was as white rs Abraham Lincoln.
The present Speaker of the Cherokee
House is w. D. Clark, white man with
no trace of Indian blood, dark-eyed, =,
| chin -whiskered, nervous and business
like, with look in bis face that says he
would just as lief fight as not. He
pushes the council along in great style.
All the five Governments are republi-
can in form, but native titles are re-
tained. Thus, tho head of the nation is
called Principal Chief, his vice Is Second
Chief and the Legislature consists of
House of Kings and House of War
riors. In the legislative records OF the
Cherokees one often sees the names OF
Black Fox, Pathkiller, Turtle-at- Home,
Young Wolf, Bark Flute, Big Rattling
Gourd and Sottshell Turtle. Among
the other Nations it is much the same,
though English names are rapidly IN
creasing.
Next to the Cherokees in tribal i'm
portance are the Choctaws, and their
present. chief is Wilson 4. Jones, of the
OKLA .fa-lay-a clan. He was born in
Mississippi, where there were many
Choctaws of that clan, but his father
came to the Territory when the present
chef was but two years old. Chief Jones
lives eighteen miles from Caddo. He
receives salary OF $1,000 year, but
doesn't need it, for he is very rich
man. Although quite light-colored he
is very much OF u Choctaw, for he speaks
scarcely any English. He made his for
tune in trade and cattle raising.
The two political parties in the Choc-
taw Nation are known to each other as
"Eagles" and ''Buzzards," and the
former, the progressive, are nov IN
mower. Although tne land in the Choc-
iaw country is good enough to make
whites eager for il, the great object,
especially with the railroads and s1ecula-
tors, IS coal. There seems to be ifne coal
everywnere In the Choctag country. 1t
has been mined there in greater or less
quantities. tor twenty-five years. Tae
present output is something over l,000,
600 tons annually. The Choctaw mining
laws allow u citizen who discovers a coal
deposit to lay claim to it and to the land
for one mile about it. This claim must
be recorded with the County Clerk.
The Nation demands a royalty of half
a cent per bushe! on all coal mined, and
the owner of the land gets another roy
atty, so there is much strife about titles,
aud an awful amount of perjury.
The word "owner" is used for con-
veuience, as 1t is no easy thing to get
any kind of title. By the laws OF all
the Nations any man can use whatever
land he fences in. provided he leaves Il
certain amount OF vacant land between
him and the next occupant. But this
last proViso is SO generally disregaried
that there is great confusion.