The times., 1898-10-30
Commissions. Report on the
Five Civilized Tribes.
SUMMARY OF WORK DONE
Urgent Needs of White Residents in
Indian TeritOry-Thirty Thousand
Children of School Age Growing
Up in IGncrnnce-No School Funds
Citizenship.

ritory has just been submitted to the
Secretary of the Interior. 1t gives
summary of the work done by the COM
mission since its annual report of Octo-
ber IL, 1897. together with a report to
Congress on the question as to whether
the Mississippi Choctaws, under their
treaties, are not entitled to all the rights
of Choctaw citizenship, except an interest
in the Choctaw annuities.
The report concludes with the full text
of the act of Congress of June 2S, 1898,
for the protection of the people of the
Indian Territory, including the text of
the agreement made by the commission
ers with the Indians in 1897, which is rati-
fed by the said act The commissioners
express themselves as satisfied with the
results accomplished during the last year.
The report first takes up the work of
the commission in determining the right
to citizenship of such persons applying
under the. act of June 10, 1896 Out of
some 1850 applications from the Choctaw,
Chickasaw, Cherokee, and Creek nations.
| only 2075 were approved by the commits
sion.
The large number of failures to obtain
admission to citizenship by the commits
sion thus shown is attributable in a great
| measure to the fact that the commission
was required by the statute "in determin-
ing such applications to respect all laws
| of the several nations or tribes not incon-
sistent with the laws OF the United States
and all treaties with said nations or
tribes, and give full force and effect to
the rolls usages, and customs of said ma
tions and tribes" A large number of
those rejected have appealed, as provided
in the law, TO the United States Court in
the Territory.
There were pending and awaiting ratifi-
cation at the last report two agreements
with this commission, one with the Choc-
taws and Chickasaws, acting together, of
date April %, 1897. and one with the
Creeks of date September q, 1897. There
was afterwards one made with the Semi
| noles of date September l6. 1897.
These agreements were duly reported to
and are on file in the department. The
one with the Seminoles has been since
| duly ratified and is now the law which
will hereafter control in that nation both
its government and property holdings. 1t
appears TO be giving general satisfaction,
and the future of this people is very en-
couraging.
The other agreements have failed on
account of dissatisfaction on the part of
! the tribes concerned to acquiesce in
| them.
| The passage of the Curtiss bill chang
| ing the communal holdings of land into
| individual holdings, and the enforcement
| of the recently ratified treaties have i'm
posed many additional duties on the COM
mission. Continuing. the report says:
The commission has been engaged in
the work of taking a census of the Semi
mole. Creek. and Chickasaw tribes in con-
formity with the present law. The COM
mission has very nearly completed a CEN
sus of the Creek and Chickasaw Indians
and freedmen and has fully completed
that of the Seminoles, and rolls of the
latter are about completed so that the
commission may at any time, when pro-
| vided with means, begin the work of al
lotment, but in order to do this work an
| appropriation of at least $4,000 is believed
to be necessary for employment of ade-
| quate assistance therefor.
Since the last report the Indian laws
in force in the Territory and the Indian
courts in which they were administered
have given place with few unimportant
exceptions) to laws corresponding to the
laws of the State of Arkansas affecting
the same subject matter, and have been
1a lina alN1 oil 81, IT,
ritory, without distinction OF race These
laws are to be administered in United
States courts and enforced through
United States officers. Every Indian resi-
dent claiming to be a citizen can try his
| title in these courts. and obtain a final
decision, if he desire 1t. in the United
States Supreme Court, like any other citi-
zen of the Republic.
'All laws hereafter enacted in the legis-
lative councils of these tribes are to be,
before taking effect, submitted to the
President of the United States for his ap-
proval or disapproval, and all the
| moneys of these tribes are to be paid to
and disburssd by United States officers.
The royalties from their coal mines and
rentals from their grazing lands are NO
longer to be paid to individuals, but into
the Treasury of the United States, for
the equal benefit of every member of the
tribe. Provision has also been made dur
ing the year for the allotment of all the
tribal lands of the Territory equally
among all its citizens.
while much work is still before the
commission in the important duty of al
loting these lands, as well as In carrying
to completion the minor details made
necessary by these larger comprehensive
! measures, yet what has been done is
fundamental, embracing the elementary
conditions essential to the healthy growth
of a prosperous people. BY them the
government of the Indian Territory and
its land system may. at an early day be
brought into harmony with those of the
| United States and of the States by which
1t Is surrounded, assuring 1t a most en-
couraging and hopeful future.
The need of some provision by the ma
, tional Government for the purposes OF
education in the Territory Is urged. While
the funds and resources of the several
tribes, properly managed, can probably
supply sufficient support for the schools
of the citizen Indians, yet the white resi-
dents cannot share in them and must look
elsewhere for the means of educating
their children.
1.-THE means resorted to In all the other
Territories, and out of which ample
school funds have been provided, do no,
exist in the Indian Territory, in which
the United States has not an acre of pub.
lie land or other property beyond thai
in public uses. If the white residents are