New-York tribune., 1905-02-22
TO PROTECT INDIANS.
NEW OIL LEASE Plan.
President and Cabinet 4pproUe It
OsageS VII BE Rich.
GFRoM THE TRIBUNE BuREAu.I

tFRoM THE TRIBUNE BUREAUI
Washington, Feb. 21.-Secretary Hitchcock
submitted to the President and the Cabinet to-
day his plan for renewal Of the Usage oil land
lease under an amendment contained in the Ind
ian Appropriation bill, and President Roosevelt
and members of the Cabinet agreed with the
Secretary Of the Interior that the plan proposed
afforded the only equitable solution Of the prob
| lem. Secretary Hitchcock's plan provides for
! the cancellation Of the blanket lease covering
l,JhoO acres, made nine years ago with Edwin
b, Foster, whose title is row held by the Ind
, ian Territory Illuminating Oil Company but
new lease will be made on almost the same
terms, covering the oil lands now being worked
by sub-essees for period of ten years but for
an area not to exceed 6S0OOO acres.
While. in the estimation of the present admin
lstratton the original lease involved serious dis
regard for the interests of the Indians it is evil
dent that the sub-lessees have invested their
capital in good faith. and it is held that grave
injustice would be done them were the opportu-
nifty denied them of continuing the industry they
have established. 1t will be necessary. how
ever. for the Indian Territory Illuminating oil
Company to establish the validity of the sub
leases to each acre Of ground before it can COM
plete the new lease
Chder the terms Of the lease soon to expire,
the Usage Indians received 10 per cent of the
with oil at the present price Of - cents a barrel
means - cents barrel The Indian Territory
Illuminating Oil Company, commonly known as
the parent company receives a percentage
which amounts to about 311A cents with oil at
the present price, and the parent company has
further received bonuses the amounts of which
except in a few instances, are not known TO the
Interior Department. In the case of Gufey &
Galley of Pttsburg, the parent company is
q hay civ
in the case of the Barnsdale lease the bonus
amounted to $4,000
In addition to the 10 per cent royalty on oil
taken out under the original lease the Indians
received a royalty of $50 a we'll where gas was
the product Under the new lease this price
will be raised to 800 we'll 1t is assumed
that, as the parent company can under its new
lease make no new sub-leases, but merely ex-
tend leases now in existence. there will accrue
to the company no further bonuses
There is no record in Washington of the stock
holders Of the Indian Territory illuminating oil
company and no knowledge is possessed at the
interior Department regarding reports from
Kansas that Thomas Taggart. William J. Bryan
ana other prominent Democrats are among the
owners Of the company Senator Stone who
was alleged TO be an owner of stock in the COM
pany. denies. it in the most emphatic terms. as
does also Senator Penrose, who saws that he in
x
tension Of the lease only in the interests of
constituents who are sub-lessees.
STANDARD OIL MAY BE IN CONTROL.
The report that Bryan Taggart Stone and
Penrose are heavily interested in the Usage oil
lands was denied this afternoon by ex-senator
James K. Jones. who is attorney for a number
of capitalists who have money invested in the
Indian Territory. Mr. Taggart is interested in
the Cherokee oil leases, but, far as he knows
Senator Jones said, neither Bryan. Stone nor
Penrose had any financial concern in the Usage
oil properties.
man named Barnsdale, of Pittsburg leased
10000 acres and other Pennsylvanians have
smaller parcels, which they are now working
Senator Penrose introduced the amendment 10
the Indian Appropriation bill authorizing the
Interior Department to extend the original or
parent lease It was because he introduced
this amendment for capitalists of his State in
Senator Jones's opinion. that the story Of his
financial connection was started and gained cur
rency
The illuminating company ia the Usage coun-
try. which has been charged with being the
Standard oil In disguise, has no connection with
that corporation whatever" said Senator Jones.
The fact that the company has not developed
the valuable land II had in its possession proves
very coucIusively that the Standard Oil Com
pany had nothing to do with it. Had the Stand
ard been interested, the oil would have been
taken out of the land, instead of being allowed
10 remain beneath the surface The sub
lessees have gone ahead and spent great deal
OF money i'll the Usage country. Guffey & Galley
alone have put in more than S2OO.OOO in plant
and rental and it would be a huge injustice to
take the lease away from them, When the
various wells which are planned are bored
and I'm operation, the Indians of the Usage tribe
will be simply rolling in dividends. They are
now the richest community in the world, and
their rights both present and future are we'll
safeguarded. indeed.
Some Senators who have given cUrsory con-
sideration to the suggestion that the Standard |
oil Company controls considerable portion |
of the Usage oil lands are inclined 10 differ with
ex-senator Jones's conclusion that the fact that |
under the Foster lease d considerable portion |
of the oil lands had been kept in idleness proved
that the Standard Oil Company did not own |
them They say that it is quite often the |
plan of a trust 10 restrict production and pre- |
vent the working of all resources, thus enhanc- |
ing the price of the product. il is TO work |
all the available sources of production.