The Odanah star. [volume] (Odanah, Ashland Co., Wis.) 1912-1916, 1913-05-23
TO THE DELEGATES
Who Called On Him Re-
centlys
The Following Lettef FROM Cons
missioner, Abbott Gives His Re.
y ply To ConferAnce Held with
Delegates which went Their
Recently.


Washington D, C. May l3, 1915.
Messrs. Charles d. Arm strong
Dan Morrison
Antoine Denomic
Sam Denomie
William Denomie
Antoine Couture
Indians of the LaPointe band of Chippe-
was of Lake Superior, Ashland, Wise.
My Friends--Referring to the very satis-
factory conference, which it was my pea>E
ure to have with you in my Office on the
morning of May 9TH, regarding the proposi
ed substitute itertis of legislation relating I'd
the allotment of lands and sale 3f timber on
the Bad River Reservation, you are advised
as follows.
III The last paragraph of the pr6posed
amendment submitted by you is as follows:
Nothing herein contained Il nothing
contained in the act approved the seventh
day of June, 1897, shall be construed as
operating to deny to any Indian child of
sny Indian mother, the right to enrolment
belonging to said ba nd.
This amendment is unnecessary to protect
the rights of the unallotted members of
your tribe. These rights are fully protected
in the act of March 2, 1907 ia states. L.!
217,] which reads:
That the act of Congress approved reb-
ruary eleventh, nineteen hundred and one
l.
and sixty-Six, entitled can act providing
for allotmentS of lands in severalty to the
Indians of the LaPoint OF Bad River Reser:
vation, in the State of Wisconsin, shall
not be construed so as to bar or in any
manner abridge or curtail the right of any
Indian to allotment on said reservation,
whether born before or after the passage Of
Act, as provided by the treaty concluded
the Mississippi, September thiftietf. cigh-
teen hundred and ffty-foLf.
III You asked me for statement of just
what the procedure would be in the matter
of the allotment of your land and the sale
of your timber, if the item as contained if
the pending Indian bill, which has passed
the House of Representatives, is permitted
to stand without change, and what there
is to guarantee that you would be consulted
in the matter of the disposal of your timber:
The procedure under the present provision
of the pending Indian bill would be as
follows: Immediately upon the passage of
the bill, the Department would cause an
enrolment of all the unenroled members OF
the LaPointe band entitled to enrolment
ard allotment on the Bad River Reservation:
Upon the completion of the roll, allotment
of land would be made to those entitled,
and just as soon as possible after the passage
of the bill steps would be taken to adver!
tie for the sale the remaining timber on
the unalloted portion of the reservation.
While there is no provision in the BILL for
consulting the Indians in connection with
the sale of the timber, told yoti that JUS
tice and fairness and proper consideration
of your right to be heard in connection with
the sale of your timber, and that | would
promise you, in SO far as was able to bind
the Indian Office, that before rules and re-
gulations were prepared for the disposition
of your timber, the same would be presen-
ted to your tribal council or any members
IF the council or any members of the tribe
Continued on back pagc.)