The Vinita weekly chieftain. [volume] (Vinita, Indian Territory [Okla.]) 1902-1905, 1904-12-22
FULL-BLOODS HIDE OUT
Much Delay in Settling Land
Matters Caused by Resist
anCe of AIlOttees Bad
Land Will be Their
Portion Now.

The field party at work in tile flint
aills Is having much trouble in round
ing up the full bloods and making
arbitrary allotments to them. The
commissioner in charge of the land
ofice still insists that the work OF
allotment will be completed by Julyl
but the Cherokees do not believe that
ID can be done. IL depends largely
upon the work of the field parties, and
tine one that Is out now Is having
much opposition One OF the com
missioners, Mr.. Breckenridge. states
that soon after January ] that other
field parties will be sent into the hills
and still more If necessary. II is evil
dent az this time that big force
must be sent out
The worst trouble that the party
has is the stubbornness Of the Indians
II does not require long for every
Indian in Il full-blood settlement 10
discover the fact that a field party 10
aliot land Is Ia the country. After
that the rattle OF a blackboard viii
run every full-blood to cover with In
credible swiftness. The Indians know
the blackboard Of the field men at
sight. can tell by It's tracks and by its
noise as far as they can hear IL. When
the field men do find the Indians, they
. refuse 10 talk, even through an inter-
prefer and the government men sim
ply have 20 guess az the improvements
md the homes OF the full-bloosls they
Ind. A surveying instrument embod-
les all the elements OF wrath of an
Indian and they would rather see
Wild animal in their hut than 20 see
4 tripod on their land. They consider
It the emblem Of their undolng.
now THE PARTY WORKS.
The field party IS furnished plats Of
al tile unalloted land In the Cherokee
nation. H. selects from this land that
ls continguous to the Indians home
and makes an arbitrary allotment
rhis Is sent IN TO the land otllce and
checked over and, II none Of tile land
has been allotted In the meantime to
s0nie other Indian. the allotment
stands. All Of this land must be sur
seyed, and tn tile mountains OF the
Cherokee nation this Is not an easy
task, especially when the indians will
not give any information The full
bloods are not the only ones who have
refused To Tile. The land narty found
4 family Of intelligent persons appaf-
antly seven-eights white who recently
lad not hled and evidently did not In
tend to.
There are uow about $1,000 allot-
ments and part allotments completed.
Filings are now making at the rate OF
100 day. If this can be continued
the work OF alloting, except contested
land, will be completed by next July.
The contest work Is now assuming
tremendous proportions. There are
already ., 2O0 contest cases filed and
they are increasing every day This
Is principally In the oil district and
there are sometimes as many as i've
Or six contestants claiming the same
piece Of land. It will require a long
time to straighten nut such lot Of
litigation
LAND At FffTY CENTS AZ ACRE.
The last 1000 allottees TO receive
their land will get most Of II IN the
llnt hills and the mountains. There
they will get tIftY cent land and will
ret so acres OF It. Those who get ar
brittany allotments are getting them
there. The land IS practically worth.
less. The appraised value IS ilfty
cents an acre The commissioners say
that these allotments viii be valuable
in ten years, ard the fact that there
Is 80 much Of The land will make Il
worth more money than the average
allotment Of farm land. Tie fact
that the mineral and the oil lands Ia
tha Cherokee nalion were never seq
regated from tie other land las caus-
ed more trouble and more work In the
allotlng than any thing else and VIII
cause more litigation for many Years
Lot sale II skiatoek.
s2.....l... a.. 4a8.sl..,a Vaff..s H.ll