The Vinita daily chieftain. [volume] (Vinita, Indian Territory [Okla.]) 1902-1913, 1903-02-05
AN EMPTY VICTORY.


| Editor Chieftain: You tell rs
| in the last issue Of the Daily Chief
| tain that the Delawa ares are beaten,
that this defeat Is as good as the
addition .of 157 ,60O acres to the
common estate of the Cherokee
Nation. That is legal-a mere
theoretical--view of the matter.
But 1--WE fellers" would like to
know something on the practical
side Of the question.
| Suppose this roseate judgment
| in favor OF the Cherokee Nation
should, upon appeal, be affirmed
snd become actually final. what
then? What good will that do
you or me, or anyother citizon Of
the Cherokee Nation? II il gen.
orally understood that, by the
agreement, this 157, 800 acres Of
Delaware land was reserved from
allotment, to be set aside and re-
main intact as q sacred prize TO be
fought for by the Delaware and
Cherokees, until the rightful own
or should be ascertained. Now
we are authorized to assume that
this segregation was actually
made; but, IN the meantime, the
allotment Of lands has actually
taken place. Doubtless every
Cherokee in the nation knows by
this time the metes and bounds Of
his allotment, the location and
the number Of acres in it, and
many Of them have filed. Now,
in apportioning these allotments,
Of course this l57 800 acres We're
not taken into account. The ques
ton then arises, What is to be
done with this handsome piece Of
property AZ piece Of common
estate belonging TO the whole
Cherokee people II would BE- worth
mighty iittle. Still, If each Indian
could get kis share Of 1t in soil to
| lie in contact with his homestead,
| 1t would, perhsps, be worth hsv-
ing. But that, Of course, will be
impossible.
There is only one way in which
the value of this property could
be made apprsciable to any living
soul, aud that is by reducing the
number OF owners to one or, At
most, to but few--ssy syndi
cate. Yes, isis pretty sure that is
v hat will have to be done with it.
II will have to be sold. possibly to
the highest bidder. or, more likely,
to somebody at such arbitrary
price as some combination of loby.
istic contrivers may see fit to fix
upon il.
Suppose il so happe ne; what
then2 We have got the money Tor
our land. Glorioufl But what
becomes Of il? Well. it goes into
the vaults of the U. s treasury
unde- The very encouraging pro
mise that at some day in the
"sweet by and by" it will be dis
tributed among the Cherokses as
. per capita. Now Uncle Sam is
always very solvent. and, but Tor
ons thing, an excellent paymaster:
he is sometimes exceedingly slow
about getting his hand into his
pocket, especially when an Indian
tribe lie the creditor. 1t is to be
feared lest, before such per capi.
"a could be realized, at least three
fourths Of the present generation
will have gone to their long home.
To them in that Gaze, this fine
tract of 157 800 acres of land would
prove to be clear loss.
o yes; from practical point Of
view, . little professional glory In
one direction and little poliical
in another, out Of the accoun is
would have been just as well. IL
Dick Adams and his crowd had
been allowed peaceably to take
the property in the first plare;
there is enough Of contingencies
pending, and collateral forces a.
work, to seriously impair the glory