The Wichita daily eagle. [volume] (Wichita, Kan.) 1890-1906, 1899-12-05
SETTING The VALUE
How Choctaw and ChickaSaw
Lands are Divided
INTO TWENTY CLASSES
Minute Rules for the AppraiS-
erS' Guidance.

Guthrie, o. T., Dec. 4-Great interest
is taken all over Oklahoma in the mat
ter of the appraisement of Chickasaw
and Choctaw lands, now, as is well
known, in progress. Copies of the Dawes
commissions recent report in which the
manner of putting each piece of land
in one of the twenty classes, are eager
ly sought OF this part of its work the
Dawes commission says, giving in the
report a complete schedule of the differ
ent kinds of land:
The essence of the Choctaw and Chick
asaw agreement is found in its first stip-
ulation, which reads as follows: That
all the lands within the Indian Terri
tory, belonging to the Choctaw and Chick
asaw Indians shall be allotted to the
members of the said tribes so as to give
to each member of these tribes, so far
as possible a fair and equal share there
of, considering the character and fertility
Of the soil and the location and value of
the lands
When read in connection with clause
from a succeeding paragraph, in Ian
guage as follows: "Thst in order to such
equal division, the lands of the Choc-
taw and Chickasaws shall be graded
and appraised so as to give to each
member, so far as possible, an equal
value of the land" it will be seen that
in grading and appraising the lands Of
the Choctaws and Chickasaws no arbi-
trary limitations are to be observed, but
that the lands are to be appraised at
their actual value, a proposition which
none Of the other tribes have thus far
been willing to accede to.
To commence upon this work the COM
mission, early in May, 1899, proceeded to
organize and equip field parties. and the
work was entered upon the latter part
of June The organization, as effected
consists of four parties, all under the
direction of one appraiser in chief, sub
ject to the supervision of the commits
sion. Each party so organized is COM
posed of six appraisers, one clerk, two
teamsters, and one cook. Two of these
and act in a double capacity. Each party,
while subsisting in one camp, operates
in two divisions, with three appraisers in
each division, one appraiser being a sur
veyor Eight divisions are thus engaged
in the field at the same time. Each
party is under an appraiser in charge.
who maintains discipline in the camp
and directs details Of his party.
Under the terms of the agreement each
nation is to be represented in this work,
and appointments to that end have been
made by the respective executives of those
tribes.
The classifcations and rules formulated
and agreed upon for this work are as
follows:
Department of the Interior,
Commission of the Five Civilized Tribes,
NTuskogee, I. T., June 7, 1899.
The following schedule of classes and
sub-classes of lands located within the
limit of those portions Of the Indian Ter
ritory belonging to the Chictaw and
Chickasaw tribes, and the rules for de-
termining the character of said lands
and the fertility of the soil, in conform
ity with the agreement between the
United States and said Choctaw and
Chickasaw tribes dated April q, 1897, and
the laws of congress relating to the same.
Commission to the Five Civilized Tribes.
TAMS BIXBY,
Acting Chairman,
NJ. D. KENYON,