The Princeton union. [volume] (Princeton, Minn.) 1876-1976, 1896-02-20
MILE Laos LANDS,

MILE Laos LANDS. 1le
Their Status Set Forth by the General
Land Office.
WAsHINGTON,S Special, Feb. l7.-Sen-
ator Nelson is in receipt Of the follow
ing letter from E. F. Best, acting COM
missioner of the general land office,
explaining the status of the lands en-
braced in the Mile Laos Indian reser-
walton: ..I
II have the honor to acknowledge
the receipt of your letter of Feb. 18th,
1897, enclosing a petition dated Law
renee, Mimi, Jan. 18th, 1896, sighed
by parties describing themselves as
bona fde settlers on lands within the
Mile Laos reservation, Minnesota.
You ask to be advised as to the status
of said land and of the claims of said
parties, and whether legislation is
needed to aid said settlers in retaining
their claims. In reply you are advised
that the history of the Mile Laos res
ervation, up to 1884, is fully given in
house executive Sd document No. Jas,
Forty -eighth congress, first session. a
number of entries and filings were al
lowed prior to July 4, 1884, when con-
gress passed an act Us Statutes, S9),
providing that said lands shall not be
patented or disposed Of in any manner
until further legislation by congress.
s'On Jan. 18th, 1889, an act was
passed US Statutes, 642), providing for
the disposal Of the coded lands OF the
Chippewa Indian reservations (of
which the Mile Laos is one), but con-
tanned a proviso that Nothing in this
act shall be held to auth orize the sale
or other disposal under it's provisions
of any tract upon which there is sub
sisting valid pre-em ption or homestead
entry, but any such entry shall be pro-
ceeded with under the regulations and
decisions in force at the date of its al
lowance, and if found regular and
valid, patent shall issue thereon u
''In considering a number of cases
involving entries Of Mile J.acs lands,
the department held on Jan. 8, 1891,
(12L. D., 52), that the act of Jan. 18th,
1889, was the further legislation re-
quired by the act of July 4th, 1884, and
directed that the pending claims for
said lands be passed to patent There
fore, all valid entries and filings made
prior to July 1th, 1884, were confirmed
by the act Of Jan. 18th, 1889, and
patents were issued on most of them, if
not on all.
son Jan. 21st, 1891, replying to a
letter from this Office, relative to the
scope of the decision of Jan. 9th, 1891
(supra) the department. advised this
office that the Mile Laos lands should
be disposed of as other public lands.
On Sept. 3rd, 1891, the department
again considered the status of said
lands Is p. D., 230), and held that they
we're subject to disposal under the
special provisions of the act Of Jan.
18th 1889, and not under the general
land laws. This Office called attention
to the apparent conflict between the
holdings Of Jan. 2lst, 1891, and Sept.
3rd, 1891, and in reply, under date Of
April 22nd, 892 IA Z. D., 1917, the
secretary informed this Office that the
decision Of Sept. 3rd, 1891, must pre-
vail, and that the disposition of said
lands be governed thereby. The OBJ
Yious effect of this decision was to raise
a. doubt as to the validity of entries al
lowed under the decision of Jan. 21st.
1891, and congress, to dispel all doubts,
passed a joint resolution, which was
approved Dec. 18th, 1898 US Statutes,
.576), confirming bona fide entries and
filings allowed between Jan. 9th, 1891,
and the date of the receipt at the dis
trict land Office of the letter Of this of.