Kansas City daily journal., 1897-01-04
MINORITY REPORT IN OPPOSITION
TO THE SENATE BILL.
TO BE PRESENTED TUESDAY.
BILL OPPOSED ON THE GROUND OF
ITS GREAT EXPENSE.
No Reason Why the Government
ShouId Buy Land From the In
dIuns and Donate II to Set
tIerS-PIutt to Make
the Report.

on Tuesday present the minority report OF
the senate committee on Indian affairs in
opposition to the free homestead bill.
which heads the senate calendar.
The report opposes the bill on the general
grounds of the vast expense its adoption
would entail upon the government Com
mencing with the year 1888. he says. the
government has purchased 533,25254O acres
of land from the Indians. agreeing to pay
s25. 20. .gS7 for it, besides $30O0.O0O set apart
as ii trust fund for the benefit OF the In
dians of the great Sioux reservation.
If" says the report, "all the land al
ready opened to settlement upon Indian
reservations heretofore ceded shall be TAX
en- up. the sum to be paid therefor by the
settlers will he $50, ,353 ,OO6S6 This bin pro-
poses to release the settlers from the pay
ment of this sum-.
The report calls attention to the fact that
it was provided in the acts bearing upon
those settlements with the different tribes
of Indians that settlers should pay sufficient
for the lands to reimburse the government
for the money paid the Indians. Several
million acres of land are embraced in these
pending agreements. The bill as it passed
the house applied only to lands in Okla
homa, but by the amendments made by the
senate committee the provisions of the bill
are extended TO all ceded Indian lands. the
amount being more than three times that
contemplated in the bill as it passed the
house All the lands on the Indian reser-
vations thus opened for settlement have
been paid for by the government before
the opening of the same except in the case
of the Cherokee Outlet, where payment
was to be made in installments, and the
sum of S4.9S0,COO still remains unpaid, and
in the case of the Great Sioux, Chippewa
and Colville reservations, where the In
dians are to be paid the government
shall receive money from the settlers upon
disposal of the lands. Another amendment
proposed to the bill in effect requires that
the government shall, upon releasing the
settlers from payment of their obligations,
pay the Indians for these lands the sum
per acre which by law is now to be paid by
the settlers.
If" says the report. this amendment
should be adopted and the bill pass, the
government would be called upon to pay in
the future, including the amount not yet
due on the Cherokee Outlet purchase, a
sum approximating $l5,OOOOOO."
The report calls attention to the fact that
negotiations are in progress for the ac-
QUESTION of other Indian lands which are
being conducted upon the policy that the
government shall be reimbursed for its
outlays.
Referring to the origin of the bill. SEN
ator Plat says in his report: THE excite
ment which preceded the opening of lands
in Oklahoma will be still remembered. as
will the mad rush, scarcely controlled by
government authorities, to secure these
lands upon the well understood condition
of payment for the same in addition to
compliance with the provision of the home
stead laws. In every appeal made to con-
greSs for the opening of the lands of these
reservations. the argument that the gov
ernment ought not to be put to the large
expenditures required in the payment of
the Indians for the REIMBURSEMENT of their
title was answered by those who were ad-
vocating and insisting upon the passage of
bills for that purpose by saying that it
was understood the government was to be
reimbursed by the settlers"
Continuing. he argues: 1T is probably
not too much TO say that not one of the
agreements made with the Indians Ceding
their lands would have been ratified. ana
not an act opening them for settlement
would have been passed, if 1t had not been
| thoroughly understood and agreed that the
| settlers upon these lands should reimburse
| the government for the amount expended
| by it to obtain them. The obligation of
| the settler to pay the government the
| price stipulated is as definite, well under
| stood and binding, as the obligation of any
| government debtor. While we do not ques-
| ton the policy of our homestead laws. we
| insist that in relation to these lands. pur-
| chased and opened upon the demand of the
| settlers. 1t was right that another policy
| should be adopted. The attractive idea of
| free homes for the people was all very well
| while the government had lands acquired
| for political and territorial reasons which
| ii could donate to them. The purchase OF
| 80 acres and the donation of the same to
citizen is entirely another thing, and can
| be justified. in the opinion of the under
| signed. upon no consideration of public
| policy or governmental duty. AS well
| might the government be called upon to
buy lands from individual owners or syn
| dicates. and donate them as free homes to
| settlers as 10 he called upon to buy lands