The Daily Ardmoreite. [volume] (Ardmore, Okla.) 1893-current, 1900-06-25
INDIANS OWN THE LAND.
No Free Homestead In the Indian
Territory, When IL Opens.

"
relative to Territory lands, which
is of general interest. especially to
many who are ignorant of the sit
uation. 1t reads:
There have been so many things
published and said about tIe open
ing up of the Indian Territory
(that portion comprising the five
civilized lribes) to settlement, that
there are many misunderstanding
and doubts as to the conditions In
the five tribes and the conditions
that will exist when the allotment
of land is made and the country
opened up for settlement. A brief
outline of conditions that exist
now, and of conditions that will
exist after the allotment, when the
country is opened for settlement is
of interest to the many inquirlng
people who have an eye on the
Indian Territory and its rich lands,
hoping for profit.
The impression has gone abroad
and is prevalent in MANY places
that there will be free lands-that
homesteading will be permitted
when the matter is finally settled.
How this impression got abroad is
beyond understanding, for there is
certainly nothing in the treaties
between the Indians and the United
States government that would in
dicate anything of the kind.
1t would be we'll for the public to
bear in mind that there will be not
one acre CT free land in the entire
Indian Territory. The Indian Ter
ritory has for many years been un'
der such lease system that it has
been rapidly settling up, much of
the soil has been put in cultiva-
ton. many improvements have
been made and instead of being q
wild. unsettled, ,uncivilized country,
it is in higher state of cultivation
than many parts of Texas.
The provisions of the treaty
known as the Atoka agreement be-
tween the Choctaw and Chickasaw
Indians and the Dawes commission
which settles all land and allot-
ment matters for all time, are the
models Of all treaties that will be
made, especially the portion of it
applying to the allotment of lands.
The ChoctaWS and ChickaSaws
have their landholding in common,
and all their treaties are made in
. common. The Seminole nation
; also has treaty providing for the
!, final settlement of its land matters
and the allotment of land in sever
atty to the people of that nation
and the provisions relating to land
allotments and holdings are much
the same as the provisions of the
Choctaws and Chickasaws. The
Creeks and Cherokees have nc
treaty yet, and are not likely tC
have one within the next twelve
months, as their latest effort was
killed by the session of Congress,
just adjourned.
| But to the point. and az explain
| alton of the situation in the Choc
/ taw and Chickasaw nations (whicl
{ will cover all the others of the fiv,
civilized tribes). The treaty be
I tween the Indians and the United
5 States government that tribal re
/ lations shall be abolished: that in
r stead of ali the Indians holding
e the lands in the name of thei
a tribe, that allotment shall be mad'
in severalty and the lands shall b,
owned by individual Indians en-
titled to them by citizenship by
= blood or intermarriage. TIL,
treaty provides that a roll shall b,
made of the entire citizenship o
the Indians. The roll of citizen
ship shall be made by the Dawes
q commission, representing til,
United States government and b!
= a commission acting with tn,
Dawes commission, representing
. the Choctaw. and Chickasav
4 nations. When the CITIZENSHIP
roll is completed and all names en-
rolled the land appraisers now il
the field surveying into quarte
! sections and forty acre tracts, th
lands of the Choctaw and Chicka
saw nation land aprraising thei
Rlo,,,