The Norfolk weekly news-journal., 1905-04-21
LIQUOR SALE 70 INDIANS
TEXT OF BREWER DECISION HAS
BEEN RECEIVED.
STATE HAS POWER TO REGULATE
District Attorney Baxter, Of Omaha,
Says That Authority over Redmen
Should be Ceded to the Federal Gov.
ernment--What May Happen.

ernment--What May Happen.
Omaha. Neb.. April 19-The full
text of the decision of the supreme
court of the United States in refer.
ence to the sale of liquor to Indian al
lotees of lands has been received at
the Office Of United States District At.
torney Baxter from Washington
The gist of the decision is emhOd.
led in these terms, expressed by Jus.
tice Brewer:
Every Indian born within the terri.
torial limits of the United States to
whom allotments shall have been
made, is hereby declared to he citi.
zen of the United States and is en-
titled to all rights, privileges and i'm.
munities as such citizen, without in
any manner impairing or otherwise
affecting the right of any such Indian
to tribal or other property.
State Has Power to Regulate.
The regulation of the sale Of intOXi-
eating liquors is one of the most com.
mon and significant exercises of the
police powers, and so far as It is an
exercise of the police powers It is
within the domain of state iurisdic-
tiOn. 1t is true that the national gov
ernment eXacts license as n condition
of the sale of intoxicating liquors, but
that is only for the purpose Of reve-
nue. and is no attempted exercise of
the police power. A license from the
United States does not give the H.
censee authority to sell liquor In a
state whose laws forbid the sale, and
neither does a license from a state
to sell liquor enable the licensee to
sell without paying the tax and oh
tanning the license required by fed
eral statutes.
We are of the opinion that when
the United States grants the privi-
leges of citizenship to an Indian It
gives to him the benefit of and re-
quires him to be subject to the laws,
both civil and criminal, of the state I;
it places him outside the reach Of po.
lice regulation on the part Of con.
gress; that the emancipation from
federal control thus created cannot be
set aside at the instance Of the govern
ment without the consent of the indi-
vidual Indian and state, and this eman-
cipation from federal control Is not
affected by the fact that the lands
granted to the Indian are granted sub.
ject to condition of alienation and
encumbrance. or the further fact that
il guarantees to him an interest In
tribal or other property.
The district court of Kansas OUnit.
ed States district COURT did not have
jurisdiction of the offense charged
and therefore the petitioner is en-
titled to his discharge from imprison.
ment.
What May be Done.
Speaking of the decision, Judge Bax
ter said at is rather sweeping, but
still it does not interfere with the law
regarding taking liquor onto the In
dian reservations. which is strictly
prohibited by the federal statutes
There are provisions in the state law
Indians. A measure was introduced
in the last legislature to prohibit the
sale of liquor within ten miles of any
Indian reservation, but it was killed
in committee | believe the bill
would have passed readily had this
decision been known earlier. About
the only effective remedy that can be
suggested now would be for the state
to cede jurisdiction of the reservation
to the government, and then the fed.
eral authorities could control the mat.
ter, just as it controls the sale of
liquor and looks after the punishment
of crimes on the military reservations
AS it is, the state has police jurisdic
tion over the Indian reservations now
under the Brewer decision. Just what
effect the decision will have on the
cases now in the federal courts from
the Indian reservations will be left to
the court to determine"