The Topeka state journal. [volume] (Topeka, Kansas) 1892-1980, 1906-04-09
DIGS up HATCHET.
Congressman Curtis Puts on His
War Paint
And Goes on Trail of William
Allen White.
DEFENDS HIS RECORD
And Makes Personal Attack on
the Gazette Man.
Hints That He Didn't Write
What's the MatterWith Kansas.


tive Charles Curtis, of Kansas, several
days ago mailed an open letter to viii
liam Allen White. of Emporia, Of
which he has given out a copy for
publication. In his letter. Mr.. Curtis
resents the editorial attack which
White recently made upon his record,
principally upon the so-called Curtis
bill for the settlement of affairs of the
five civilized tribes.
Il have just read the Ease, mislead-
ing and unfair editorial in your paper
of March 81. The bill you attack and
which you insinuate was favored by
me was drawn by the department of
the interior. and sent by the secretary
to the house and senate for considera-
ton.
Il introduced it in the house as it
came from the department, and since
then it has been known as the Curtis
bill. If your sense of justice had been
sufficient to have warranted 1t. you
could easily have informed yourself of
| the facts, because, if you had taken the
time to read the leading daily papers
OF the country, you would have known
/ it was a department measure.
IF you will examine house docu-
ment No "A, first section. Fifty-ninth
| congress. you will find the draft of the
bills submitted by the secretary. The
! bill, as presented by him, authorized
4 MIN to sell the coal lands of the ChOc-
/ taw and Chicasaw tribes, about 45O,-
| 600 acres, at public auction, in bulk or
in parcels, as he might deem for the
best interest of the Indians
The Leasing Provision.
THE leasing provision you complain
or was substituted for the selling
clause on the floor of the house The
amendment was offered by Mr. Lacey.
OF Iowa. chairman of the public lands
committee. than whom there is no
more honest and reliable member of
congress. It was agreed to bv an
overwhelming vote of the house and
places the leasing Of the now Unbiased
part, about 100000 acres, in the hands
OF the secretary, who has had twenty
years experience in the coal business
The president and his secretary of tae
interior, Mr.. Hitchcock, have con
stantfy looked after and protected the
interests Of the Indians. and It has al
ways given me great pleasure to assist
them.
II have been in congress for more
than thirteen years, and challenge you
| to point to one line of Indian leeis1a-
| t1on written or supported by me which
| the Indians.
Speaker Cannon asked me. when he
appointed me on the ways and means
/ committee, to remain on the committee
on Indian affairs, because of nv knowI-
edge on the question and the confidence
he had in me- Is it likely tha he who
has had thirty years of service in the
mouse would have asked me to remain
on the committee If my standing and
record were as you intimate? During
my service in the house / have opposed
and fought every questionable claim or
| bill against the Indians. The records
| will show that I have been successful
/ in defeating a number of them. and I
/ have been frequently consulted. both
| at the department and at the White
House regarding important legislation,
! Indian as well as other matters
First Curtis Bill Was His.
MANY of the Choctaw and Chickasaw
coal leases were made before I became
a member C the hou--, and at least
eleven of them were approved and con-
4 frmed by act Of congress passed in 1890
| three years before I became q memb ber
| Nothing more was &l3ne by congress in
! regard to coal leases until 1898 when
| I introduced the first Curtis bill. every
| line of which was written by me- and
If you will take the time to read that
act you viii fin5 that any mineral
leases thereafter made without the ap-
/ provaI of the secretary Of the interior
| should be absolutely void. BY that leg
islation, which caused the Indians to
make agreements with the government
and under the wise policy of the secre-
! tary of the Interior, the Chocta VS. and
| Chickasaws have been receiving large
royalties from their coal lands. The
royalties last year amounted to s24S O0o.
IT did not know to whom the leases
were made. az the whole matter was
left in the hands of the secretary of the
interior, and I was satisfied he would
protect the interests of the Indians.
Further, I have never aided or assisted,
directly or indirectly, any railroad com
| pany in securing coal or any other
kind of a lease in the Indian Territory.
Value Greatly Exaggerated.
II note what you say about the value
of the ChoctaW and Chickasaw Indians
and I must say the man who says they
are worth $4,000,000,0 900 has been eth
er greatly deceived, or wrongfully in
+ formed. The lands are supposed to be
worth from S10. 100000 to $40 .000, 600
and propose to help the Indians get
all they are worth. I have favored set
ting them aside for school purposes,
and 1t was my amendment which was
agreed to in conference authorizing the
secretary to ascertain If such agree
nent could be made with the Indians.
Under the agreem ents with the IN
dams, the coal lands were to be sold
before March T. 1905 The secretary
of the interior tried to sell them. They
we're divided into six districts, and the
sale was advertised in seventeen Of the
leading newspapers of the country (the
Emporia Gazette was not among the
number). There were fifty tracts for
which bids were received; they con-
tafned SO, 946 acres, and the bids aver
aged q little over So per acre. There
was one tract Of 800 acres offered, and
the bid was $3.50 per acre. So you
see the value placed on these coal
exaggerated "
IN conclusion. Mr.. Curtis briefly re-
views his service in congress. six years
as representative from the Fourth and
eight years from the First Kansas dis
trict. and says he cannot let Whites
SANDER 20 unrebuled on account OF