Baxter Springs news. [volume] (Baxter Springs, Kan.) 1882-1919, 1899-02-18
A LETTER FROM HON. 5. J.
CRAWFORD.


EDITOR RECORD: ! notice Ia the
Record of the 18th, nm unsigned
communication entitled "Doings OF
the Quapaw Council" which Gays,
In substance, that, at q meeting OF
the said council, on the I'd of Jan.
uary, the clerk produced a docu-
ment praying congress to let the
chief and clerk sell 240 acres OF
Quapaw school lands to pay Ex-
Governor Crawford thousand dol
lars for services supposed to have
been rendered the Quapaws when
he was representing the renters of
the Quapaw reserve, for which the
renters paid him $50. After a care
full inquiry your correspondent
could find but four or FIVE who
knew anything about Crawford be-
ing employed"
know not who your correspond
ent is, but I am told he 10 q Quapaw
aliottee. If 80, he 10 the owner OF
2lO acres of land by reason of what
the clerk, Mr.. A. w. Abrams, and
myself did for him. And his wife
and children (f he has wife and
children) also own and have a pat
ent to 24O acres each, by reason OF
what we did, and the same is true
of every othe allottee on the Qua
paw reservation.
In 1887 congress passed a law
authorizing the secretary of the in
terror to ailot 100 acres of land to
the head of an Indian family. and
so acres TO single persons over IL,
and 40 acres to minor children, In
certain Indian reservations, includ-
ing the Quapaws. From 1887 to 1888
Mr.. Abrams fought off allotments
to the Quapaws under said law, and
worked necessarily for five years
trying to secure special act BY
congress authorizing an allotment
of 200 acres each. the same as had
by special act been allotted to the
Peorias and Miamis.
Having failed TO accomplish his
purpose, he aud Frank Waller came
to my Office about January I. 1893,
and employed me to assist them.
They asked me 10 examine their
treaties, and advise them as TO the
best course to pursue in order to
prevent allotments under the act of
1887, and also to assist them in re.
curing allotments of ut least 200
acres each to the Quapaw people.
After q careful examination of all
the Quapaw treaties reached the
conclusion that the title of the Qua.
paw reservation was in the Quapaw
nation. and the nation could convey
such title as II possessed to the in
dividual mem beers thereof. An opin-
ion to this effect l gave Messrs.
Alarms aud Waller. and ut the
same time prepared an act for the
general council, providing for al
lotments, which was protected by
Mr.. Abrams and the council, and
passed and approved on March q,
1888. Under this act an allotment
of 200 acres was first made'to every
man, woman and child whose name
was on the approved roll of the
Quapaw tribe. This left an average
surplus of unallotted lands equal
to about 40 acres per capita, and Mr..
Abrams and myself came to WASH
ington and laid the whole matter
before the proper committees of
congress, showing what had been
done in the way of allotmeuts, and
asking that the work be ratified and
confirmed and patents Issued to the
allottees by the secretary of the in
terror. Through our efforts con-
Gress not only ratified and con-
firmed what had been done by the
nation, but authorized an allotment
of the additional 40 acres, and d.
rected the secretary of the interior
to issue patents to the allottees,
which was done.
From the beginning of this work
in 1893, the department of the inter
Tor opposed us step by step, claim
ing that Il could not be done by the
tribe: and from the beginning we
commended that Il could be done,
and II was done. Dur
ing the progress of this work !
made several trips to the reserva-
ton, appeared before the council
and explained matters In detail;
made several trips to Washington,
and remained here for months en-
gagged In that work: also pre-
pared ianumerable briefs and legal
documents; argued and answered
every phase of every question of
law and fact that could be raised.
and all at my own expense. From
the commencement of this import
ant work in 1893 to the present time
I have never received one dollar,
not even q postage stamp. for ser
vices or expenses In this case, from
the Quapaw nation or anybody else.
But your "allottee" correspondent,
who IL either malicious perverter
of the truth or densely ignorant of
current events, was made rich by
reason of what I, In part, helped to
do, at my own expense.
After the work had progressed