The Montgomery advertiser., 1905-02-22
ASK INVESTIGATION
OSAGE INDIANS APPEAL TO PREsI.
 DENT ROOSEVELT.
Protest Against New Lease of Their Oil Lands and Aver That an In- QuIry Will Light Up
 Things.

Washington, Feb. H.-WtHiam T. Leahy, a member of the Council of the osage Indian tribe in a statement given out today says the Indians are opposed to the renewal of the oil lease on their lands upon the existing terms and are protesting against renewal
 The original lease given to E. B. Foster for a period of ten years, the statement says, was approved con trary to the wishes of the Indians. The statement asks that the Presi- dent have an investigation made, as those affected by the lease have been obliged to fight their battle alone and that they have been unable to secure the consent to employ assistance which can be done only with the ap- proval of the Department.
 Mr. Leahy is one of ten Indians who went to Washington, and according to the statement of Mir. Leahy they came to secure among other things, ade- quate royalty for leases on their In- dian oil lands. They were fairly treat ed before the House Committee on Indian Affairs, the statement recites. but when the Senate Committee on In- dian Affairs gave a hearing on the Penrose amendment they expressed a desire to be heard, it is recited, but the
  their delegation a hearing, saying they could make their statement to the Sec retary of the Interior. The statement continuing says:
 The Secretary of the Interior as- sumed to represent us before that Committee before the hearing, and stated that he would be in favor of renewing the lease on 6S0.O00 acres of territory on terms similar to those of the original lease-that Is. with royal ty of 10 per cent to the Indians"
 It is then added that 6SO.0OO acres covers the entire oil district of the territory owned by the tribe and Is all the oil company desired. The state ment takes issue with a statement lt- tributed to the Secretary of the Inte- rior that the Indians consented to a compromise. The original lease, 1t Is stated, covered 1,50O.000 acres.
 We relied upon the support of the Department before Congress-" the statement says, because we have been led to believe that the entire admins tration was unutterably opposed to the renewal of the lease. and we feel that the Osage Indians have been unfairly and unjustly dealt with in the grant, ing of a new lease on our oil lands without our consent or provision for g. greater royalty that ~e now receive.
 We have understood that the In- dian Territory Illuminating Company were willing to pay us a greater roy alty if we would consent to the renew al of the lease. but the statement of the Secretary of the Interior before tho Committee on Indian Affairs was to the effect that the royalty now paid, that is, one-tenth of that produced, was enough"
 The statement then says what was said by the Secretary before the Com mittee cannot be reconciled with the statement in which he spoke of the original lease as "an unheard of mo- nopoly' and public scandal"
 Continuing the Leahy statement says:
 But right In the face of that state ment he sanctions the renewal of the lease on 6S0.000 acres of principally the entire oil district of the Osage Ma tion under exactly the similar terms of original lease"
 It is claimed in sthe statement that the parent company is enabled to nay the Indians 10 per cent royalty pro- vided for ir their blanket lease and have a margin of 1-2 per cent in addition to the bonus which it is stat ed Is required of sub-iessees before they commence drilling.
 Complaint is made that the delega- ton was not able to secure the con sent of the Department to employ as- sistance. which consent is necessary. The efforts now being made to secure extension of the lease under the same conditions, 1t is stated. are protested against by all the members of the tribe. The statement closes bv ssv- ing: Let the President have an in- vestigation made and some facts will be brought to light which will show that we have been un1nstIv treated