The Daily Ardmoreite. [volume] (Ardmore, Okla.) 1893-current, 1901-03-01
WILL NOT BECFME A LAW AT
THIS SESSION OF coNdDESS.
hitchcock Yields TO Persuasion and De
plomscy From Dawes Commission
Has Dire Threats to Anyone who
s..tsto curtaiI HIs Authority
Special to the Ardmoreite.

commission, mas, through peIsud'
sion and diplomacy, convinced the
secretary of the interior that GER
tain provieions of the treaty re-
Gently agdeed upon between mem
bers OF the commission and repre-
sentatives of the Choctaw and
Chickasaw nations were not in
tended in any way as n reflection
upon either Secretary Hitch
cock or the interior department.
Accordingly, after many explana-
tions, the question has been
dropped. but it is well understood
by the commission now that if any
further attempts are made to con-
stitute the Dawes commission IA
court of final resort in matters per-
tanning TO the tribal governments
in the Indian Territory, and divest.
ing the secretary of the interior of
his supervisory authority that the
eulprit or culprits guilty of the
Ofense will be summarily dealt
with hy the department.
The uew treaty has been sent to
congress a'ter being carefully over
hauled arc modified in many re-
spec,s ila provisions constitut-
ing the Dawes commission court of
hnal resort has been stricken out.
Article eight, proposing to set
aside by congressional act the
judgments of the federal courts in
the Territory in favor of the ap-
plicants for citizenship in the va
rious( tribes. is still retained in the
treaty, but is adversely recon-
mended by the secretary of the in
terror in strong letter to congress.
By some unexplained and mystic
rious method the secretary has been
led to believe that the Atoka agree
ment is a failure and that it is in
dispensable to the proper transac
ton of business in the Choctaw
and Chickasaw nations to supplant
the original treaties based upon
that agreement by new ones con-
tanning more comprehensive pro
visions. Until the present time no
one has ever raised the question of
the soundness of the Atoka agree
ment and the treaties arising there
from, but now at an unexpected
moment the Dawes commission has
again sprung surprise upon the
members of the Indian committees
OF the house and senate and are de-
manding new and more "compre-
hensive" legislation.
That the treaty will fail to be-
come a law at this session of con-
& 10 an absolute certainty and
the l.. cts of future action up
on it By coming congresses are
very mesgre. The members of the
Dawes commission will have great
difficulty in convincing senators
and representatives that a new
treaty with the Choctaws and
Chickasaws is necessary or even
expedient. 1t is pointed out by
senators who are on the commit
tee on Indian affairs that all of the
legal questions involved in the old
treaty has been passed upon by the
courts and definitely settled so that
the Dawes commission as well as
the citizens of the tribes under
stand how to proceed without end
o less litigations in the courts. If
new treaties are agreed to
they wonld certainly result in
suits in the courts which would
embarrass and impede the work of
closing up the tribal governments
and prevent the oparir 49,
two nations for var
These and other o jecuons .r b
ing urged agains ~ on on luv
treaty sent to cor 'ess.
In his letter I usmitting the
lty to the e Secretary
Hitchcock says:
Herewith | h.nsmit for the
consideration 'N"se of rep