Tulsa daily world. [volume] (Tulsa, Indian Territory [Okla.]) 1905-1919, 1913-01-16
THE FATHER OF SIX ENROLLED
OsAGES POINTS OUT THE
WEAK POINTS.
much Time WAS WASTED
Seven Years Spent In Dlckcring Over
Lcascs--Thcn Came the big
four" Deal.
BY =. G.. KENNEDY
Reasons Why Regulations of the De-
partmcnt In Leasing Usage Lands
Should BE Upheld, and Dismissal ol

Reasons Why Regulations of the De.
partmcnt In Leasing Usage Lands
Should BE Upheld, and Dismissal ol
Council Justified.
TO the Usage Voters, >Allottees and all
persons interested
Recently there appeared an article
by Mr. Palmer, one of the accredited
personal representatives. of the Uncle
Sam OH company, relative to the re-
cent dismissal Of the Usage Council,
the leasing of the Usage lands under
the regulations promulgated by the
department, and the -four big leas-
es," ! feel this article should be an
swered, and hence the following:
| Six Of my family are enrolled mem-
bers of the Usage tribe of Indians
and at this very day own their entire
complement of lands allotted to
them. and all their Usage rights are
preserved in tact. | represent them,
and am therefore, writing this in
their behalf, and to defend and pro-
tect their inherited rights, as well as
those of every other Usage allottee
in the matter of leasing Usage lands
| for oil and gas.
Seven years of the 25 years Of the
reservation have been wasted by the
council in pickering over the methods
Of leasing these lands. The Osages
have held mass meetings, have ap.
pointed advisory boards, who have
discussed these methods for months
and have received the advice
Affairs at Washington, d. c., at var
ious meetings with him there and OF
the Interior Department, in the meth
cd of leasing these lands, and after
many months or delay, the council
accepted and approved what are COM
monty known as the -four big leas-
es" Rightly these leases were disap-
proved by the Interior Department,
and It's action in turn heartily endors-
ed by the president. After evidently
seeing the inability or indisposltion of
the council to secure the most adVan-
| tageous leases for the Osages, and
recognizing the fixed purpose OF the
council to foist upon the Osages leas-
es clearly detrimental to the tribe,
| the Interior Department, in pursu-
ance of the act Of congress promul-
gated carefully considered regulations
and, in pursuance of those regula-
tions offered to the highest bidders
several tracts, under sealed bids, and
many bidders, under those regula-
tions, made their sealed bids, put up
their certified checks required and
complied with the regulations In all
respects. The Usage council, when
these bids were opened with
promptness that indicated minds
made up before consideration given,
refused to ratify these leases Prior
to this however, the council had
contumaciously refused to fill vacan-
cies properly declared by the Secre-
tary of the Interior, and exercising
| the undoubted power vested in him,
he finally removed the entire coun-
ell, and has called an election for the
22nd instant to elect new council
and officers.
The article referred to is directed
| to this situation. In view Of the in
| terests of my family and all Usage
allottees, | feel that | am more than
| justified in answering the article, not
/ because of the facts therein stated to
support the positions taken but he
cause its mere assertions and yitu-
perations may be taken as facts, and
because those who are called upon to
act in this election ought to know,
If they have not taken the trouble to
learn, the real facts as they exist,
The article does not state a single
fact to support its contentious, but
is mass Of unsupported charges. vi
tuperations and what | call chaste
billlngsgate, and well-construu,sd 70
arouse the passions of those who Will
be swayed by prejudice. It does not
undertake to show wherein the -four
big leases" are better for the Indians
than the methods employed by the
Interior Department, but has used the
wal known msthods employed by
those who have not argument that
Is, abuse, charges and vituperations
hoping in the sandstorm which the
author has raised by the mighty winds
of his rage to conceal the weaknesses
Of his own petition and that Of those
whom he represents. In this hour
Of necessary action, we need cod
facts and not hot words. | concede
in the beginning that If the momcn-
tous questions now before the Osages
could or should be determined upon
a liberal use of language, the author
and his people would have the bottle
won. If, however, facts are to be
taken, then the department Is right
and 1t should be sustained by every
Usage voter and every person inter-
ested in Usage matters.
Let as look at some Of the cold
facts and see whether or not they will
bear the conclusions assumed but not
proved by the article.
The regulations as promulgated by
the department is fair to the Osages
and assures a royalty Of 18th and
safeguards the tribal rights with