Indian chieftain. [volume] (Vinita, Indian Territory [Okla.]) 1882-1902, 1897-12-23

nation and not to the courts of the |
United States.
Over these suits the courts of the |
United States will have no juris-
diction throughout their future
prosecution.
They must remain with the trib-
al courts until finally disposed of,
but a plaintiff having a civil suit
in a tribal court, may dismiss that
suit without prejudice if the rights
of the defendant are not effected
thereby, and institute a suit there
after in the United States court.
As TO the criminal suits, the law
is different. The law says that all
criminal causes for the punish
ment of an offense committed after
January first, 1898. by person in
said territory, the United States
court will have jurisdiction there
for, only as to the offense commit
ted after January first 1898, by one
Indian against another of the same
tribe. And on and after January
1st, 1898, all prosecutions must be
for the violations of the laws of the
United States and not for any vio-
lation of the laws of the nation.
This court is not clothed with
jurisdiction to enforce punishment
as provided under the tribal laws.
Ali persons will be under laws OF
the United States for the Indian
Territory and all offenses commit
ted against those laws will be pun
ished only in the United States
court.
AS to offenses committed before
the first of January 1898, against
tribal laws, the tribal courts
will have jurisdiction thereof,
whether the suit has been insti-
tuted before the first of January,
1898, or whether after the first of
January, 1898. If the offense is not
barred by the statute of limitation
of the nation, it may be instituted
and prosecuted in the tribal courts,
the same as if the act of congress
had not been passed. All offenses
committed against the tribal laws
prior to January next must be
prosecuted in the tribal courts and
they may be triable in those courts
thereafter at any time until such
offenses have been barred by the
statute of limitation OF the several
nations. If that were not true
they would have been classed by
congress as offenses against the
tribal laws and not for their prose-
cution to be determined in the
tribal court. Congress never in
tended that. As to offenses COM
mitted against the tribal laws
prior to that time, the tribal courts
exist the same as before for the
purpose of Furnishing those Of
lenses until finally barred by the
statute of limitation.
In regard to the municipal gov
ernment in the Cherokee nation:
There are no municipal govern
ments in the other nations. | am
of the opinion that offenses
against the ordinances OF the city
governments are offenses as much
as are offenses againt the laws OF
the nation, and after January next
all offenses against those ordinan-
ces are offenses against the govern
ment of the Cherokee nation. II
they take place after January 1st,
1898, they cannot thereafter be
prosecuted in the municipal
courts.
A stream cannot rise above Its
source. A municipality cannot
have greater power than the gov
ernment of creation and if the
laws of the Cherokee nation can
not be enforced in the Cherokee
courts after that time, how much
less could the laws of a municipal
ity created under the authority OF
the Cherokee government.
While this may produce some
embarrassment for time, happily
for the good people of the Chero-
kee nation, congress has already
provided that under the chapter
of Mansfield's Digest in reference
to the incorporation of cities in
Arkansas can be put in force and
cities included in the Cherokee
nation can organize under the
provisions of Mansfeld's Digest
and the municipal governments in
our several towns, when organ
lied, will embrace ali of the resi-
dents of the towns and all can
vote-and hold Office if they can
get enough votes. And those or
dinances will put citizen of the
United States in Office as easy as 9
citizen of the Cherokee nation. Sc
that instead of jumping out oi
the frying pan into the fire." you
are getting out of a ne-sided gov
ernment which only operates on 6
portion of the people, into one
whose laws operate on all OF the
people alike.
The inefficient must give away
to the efficient; the imperfect tC
the perfect, which is found in the
construction of the laws of the
United States that places all men
on an equality before the law, anC
instead of the good people of th'
Cherokee nation regretting the
coming of this, they ought to hal
it as the dawn of a political mil
lenium. 1t is the beginning o
good and perfect order and max
ing us all free and equal.
Itharefore trust that all of the