The Tomahawk. [volume] (White Earth, Becker County, Minn.) 1903-192?, 1924-08-28

negotiate with the Indians for the
complete cession of all their lands,
except sufficient land on the Red
Lake reservation to allot the 1853
Indians then occupying that reser.
vation, and except sufficient land
ON the White Earth reservation to
allot all the remaining (about $1,000
Indians. Each Indian was to re.
ceive 80 acres of land. 10 make
the allotments to the approximately
7,1O0 Indians required approxi-
mately 56S,OOO acres. Thus the
lands to be ceded to the United
States aggregated approximately
3,422, 900 acres.
The act expressly directed that
the allotments to the Indians should
be made as soon as the agreements
were obtained, and authority was
given the Secretary of the Interior
to arbitrarily allot any Indian who
failed to take his or her allotment
within four years.
The act expressly provided that
the cession to the United States of
the ceded lands should be upon the
following terms and conditions:
The ceded lands were to be sur.
veyed into 40 acre lots. Each 40
acre lot upon which there was
standing or growing pine timber
was to be classified as "pine lands "
All other land was to be classified
as agricultural lands" AL! tim
Der on each 40 acre lot classified
as "pine land" was to be estimated
and appraised by competent men.
A minimum price of $500 per one
thousand feet was fixed by law for
the pine timber. When the timber
had been estimated and appraisee
the law directed that each 40 acre
tract of the "pine lands" should
be offered for sale at public auction
and the land and timber sold to
the highest bidder for cash, but ip
no event should any sale be made
for less than the appraised value.
The tracts classified as "agricult.
ural lands' were to have been dis.
posed of under the homestead laws
of the United States to the actual
settlers at $1.25 per acre, which
amount was, to have been paid
prior to the issuance of any patent.
The net amount received from the
ceded property was to be deposited
in the Treasury of the United
States to the credit of all the
Chippewa Indians in Minnesota,
and was to bear interest at the rate
of per ceutum per annum for a
period of fifty years after the
allotments had been completed.
The interest annually accruing
upon the fund was to be divided
annually among the then members
of the different bands or tribes
parties to the agreements, apd
their issue thereafter born and in
being when the payments were
made. At the expiration of the
fifty years the principal fund was
to be divided and paid to the In
dians and their issue then living.
Under the authority contained
in the act of 1889 the President
appointed a commission. one mem
Der of which was Bishop of the
Catholic Church. When the com
missioners sought to negotiate
with the Indians for the cession of
their lands upon the. terms stated
in the act, the Indians refused to
treat with them, assigning as their
reason therefor that they had
previously entered into many
treaties with the United States
none of WHICH had ever been re-
spected by the United States aad
its officers; that with such a record
they did not care to have any
further dealings with the United
States. The persuasive influence
of the Catholic Bishop was then
invoked. who assured the Indians