The Tomahawk. [volume] (White Earth, Becker County, Minn.) 1903-192?, 1916-07-20

this or last year regular, as Henry
| Warren so stated when the Furst
! forces were defeated although Jim
Coffey, another active member of
the force, took an opposite view.
But afterwards a vote was taken
which, according to the tellers
whom the president selected from
the Furst forces, resulted in forty
eight for the Furst forces and forty
six for the opposition. Thecorrect-
ness of this count was challenged,
but the president refused to test
it by having another vote taken.
Four persons who kept a tally of
the vote pronounced the count
taken by the tellers as being incor-
rect.
There was such gross violation
of fairness that it became apparent
to the opponents of the Furst forces
that the issue would have to be
fought out next year.
As the matter now stands with
regard to the effort of the anti
Furst forces to have the Chippewa
Claims Commission reorganized so
that one member from each reser
walton should be selected, B. l..
Fairbanks, VIM. Potter, Neshe-
kay-we-gah-bow, John G. Morri-
SOP, Henry Warren and Eugene
Warren are still members of the
commission. John g.. Morrison
was reelected president of the
council and he was thus restored
as commissioner, regardless OF
his prior resignation, but George
Berry and Frank Beaulieu having
resigned, they ceased to be men,
bers of the commission.
Duties Of the Commission.
The object of the resolution Gre
ating a commission was for the
purpose of first having the men,
bers thereof investigate the claims
of the Chippewas against the Uni
ted States, and then take steps
to secure the passage by congress
of an act referring these claims to
the Court of Claims. This has not
been done except that John q.
Morrison stated at the council that
he had obtained ten abstracts re-
garding homesteads or land that
had been disposed of by the govern
ment which formerly comprised
Red Lake Chippewa reservation
lanes, but he failed to state
whether these lands were Chippewa
of Minnesota or Red Lake Chip
pewa lands.
$4,000, 900 Involved.
Approximately fifteen million
dollars are involved in the issue be
tween the anti Furst and the Furst
forces, and the former are opposed
to placing in the hands of an at
torney who has had no experience
in the prosecution of Indian claims,
and whose principal practice, it is
alleged, has been the collection of
bad individual debts.
As evidence of the lack of know
ledge or ability regarding Indian
claims, the Furst forces are ap'
parently not familiar with the laws
governing Indian claims, for the
council created commission anc
provided for it's work, but it couIc
not be assumed that the men now
on the commission would remain
there indefinitely but that in the
course of the meetings of The
General Council changes would
necessarily take place in the per
sonnet of the commission. 1t cal
therefore readily be seen that thu
commissioners appointed at TIT
General Council of last year ex
ceeded their authority by employ
ing Furst and others without tn
consent of the Council. The reso
ulation creating a commission ex
pressly provides that certain worl
shall be done by the commission
> for the Chippewas off Mlnnesot