Indian chieftain. [volume] (Vinita, Indian Territory [Okla.]) 1882-1902, 1897-03-25

apart a foot OF Cherokee lands fol
townsites. Pm not talking abou
physical force; for the United
States has enough of that to whiI
even Spain and clasp the mongrel
denizens Of Cuba to her national
bosom. am writing about lawful
or right power.
a. Because the lands in the
Cherokee nation are not public
lands of the United States They
have been bought by the Cherokee
nation from the United States as
witnessed by patent duly executed.
b. Quoting the opinion of At
torney General Devins, the sale OF
such lands to the Cherokee nation
has had the effect of separating
them from the public lands OF the
United States, and vest them in
private ownership. This opinion
has been fortified by the current of
opinion rendered by the courts of
the United States.
C. The Cherokee nation is not a
territory of the United States in
the proper sense of the term; and
while il is not a state of the Union
nor a foreign state in the sense of
the constitution, its character has
been defined by the courts as that
Of state, possessing municipal
powers. In this capacity it has al
ways exercised the functions Of
stateship. 1t has waged war, en-
tered into treaties, made peace,
owned territory, ceded territory to
the United States, and purchased
territory from the United States
receiving Herewith fee simple
title from the government. By
consequence congress has no power
to treat the lands of the Cherokee
nation as if they were simply pub
lie lands lying within territory
Of the United States.
d. Nor can the law of necessity
be turned to as a reason for dotting
the Cherokee country with town
site reservations. Conditions are
different in the Cherokee nation
from those in the other Of the five
tribes. The Chickasaws, Choctaws
and Creeks allowed many non citi-
zens to enter their countries and
invest large sums of money in
building up their towns, and it is
now said that those non-citizens
have equitable rights that must be
provided for in coming to an agree.
ment with the Dawes commission.
But in the Cherokee nation no non
citizens have expended their money
in the erection of costly buildings
or other improvements in the
towns So while it may be neces-
sary, to save the interests of the
non-citizen whites in those other
nations by the townsite arrange
ment which they have made down
there, there is no necessity to do
the same thing in the Cherokee
nation.
For information Of the people at
large, desire to say in reply to
the inquiry as to why the Bushy-
head commission does not do some
thing, how could that commission
have done anything when they
themselves were at Tahlequah and
the Dawes commission in Wash
ington? 1t was agreed by the two
commissions at Muskogee before
Christmas that the Dawes commits.
sion would meet us at Tahlequah
early in January when negotia-
tions would be entered upon. But
it seems the Dawes commission
was detained at Washington be-
yond their expectations, while the
Bushyhead commission have spent
a great deal of time endeavoring TO
a scheme of agreement no
as to be ready on the return OF the
Dawes commission to 60 forward
with the business.
Another remark. II is claimed
by our enemies that our treaties
with the United States are all dead.
And worse still, some of our own
people appear to have drifted into
the same notion. But | am not
that way. A lawful contract can
never die until all of its conditions
nave been complied with, even
though it should take as "long as
grass shall grow or water runs" to
meet those conditions. Hence, the
very first thing to be done looking
TO an agreement with the Dawes
commission is an acknowledgment
on part of the United States that
our treaties, our patent, our right
to self government, are all today,
in full force and virtue as under
stood by the Cherokee people when
those treaties were made and said
patent was executed. We must
negotiate as free mel, just as so
many white men would do if they
were in our place. We are not
like Ireland under the paw of the
British lion, nor like Cuba under
the lash OF Spain, nor yet like Crete
under the hoofs OF the "unspe aka.
BILE Turk" We are few people
and having rights, we sh ould be
civilized enough TO assert them
in the face Of our enemies "and the
rest Of mankind" THE Gods
help those who help thems elves. "
But | opine the Gods despise the
spirit Of coward and the willing
ness TO he a slave.
Work of the Courts.