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Special Agent Reynolds next visited the place where the killing occurred (150 miles from the agency) and took the testimony of all but one of the wardens connected with the affair and also of a few others, examining each one by himself. From their statements it appeared that W. K. Wilcox, game warden of Routt County, had been notified by the chief game warden of Colorado that Indians from Utah were probably killing game in violation of law and should be arrested unless they left the State. Proceeding with a Mr. McCormack toward Bear and Snake River Valley, Mr. Wilcox was informed at Maybell that the Indians numbered probably 100. He therefore sent back for an additional force to assist him. Two days later, October 24, ten wardens, all but Thompson and Armstrong armed, with two others, decided to visit the Indian camp, but before doing so Thompson and a man named Templeton were sent ahead to try if possible to induce the Indian men to come to Thompson's ranch to meet the wardens and talk over matters. On their way thither they met Star and another Indian, had some conversation, and went on. Meantime the wardens had concluded to follow slowly, and soon came in sight of the two Indians which the advance party had met. One of them turned immediately and started in the direction of the camp. The other was overtaken and disarmed and taken to the camp, which the party reached about 10 o'clock in the morning. There they found six Indian men, eight or ten women, and a few children. All the men were armed, and some of the women had arms in their tents. Two deer, still undressed, many deer hides, with some beef hides, and a quantity of deer hair, were found in the camp.

The Indians were notified that they must leave the State or be arrested. After some time, attempt was made to disarm and arrest them, which the Indians resisted. Then, to quote from the report of the special agent:

In the final attempt to arrest the Indians, an Indian, unexpectedly to all, fired his gun at one of the wardens, Al Shaw, and as he was about to fire, a warden, Mr. Kimberly, standing near Shaw, struck the gun to one side, and the shot missed Shaw and hit a woman. At this moment the firing was commenced by the wardens and Indians, which was participated in by about only five or six of the wardens and lasted but a few minutes, and when it had ceased, it was found that some Indians had been killed and some wounded, and Shaw was lying on the ground in a senseless condition, having been stricken down by the Indian who had fired the first shot. The wardens then went away to Thompson's ranch.

The wardens deny that they fired the first shot or that they drew their rifles on the Indians before the firing commenced, and on the whole the special agent is inclined to accept their version of the affair as against that of the Indians, and to acquit the posse of anything deliberate or malicious in the killing. Some of them have homes on

the Bear and Snake rivers and have lived there for years.

The affair created great turmoil in that vicinity, and women and children were taken to Lay, 25 miles distant, and remained there until the excitement subsided.

This was the old hunting ground of the Utes before they were removed from Colorado and they have always depended on game for no small part of their food and clothing. They can not understand why they should be shut out from it during certain seasons of the year by State laws, especially when the right to hunt game in this region was guaranteed to them by a treaty with the Government, which provided that such right should be inviolable and continue so long as game existed there. However, the United States Supreme Court has held, in Ward v. Race Horse (163 U. S., 504), that the admission of a State into the Union. annuls such treaty rights. Therefore the Utes could legally be held by the officials of the State of Colorado to be violating the game laws. The testimony shows that the Indians were aware that their hunting was liable to be objected to, and that they had been for some time rather apprehensively on the lookout for the "buckskin police," and had made inquiries as to what they would be likely to do to them.

SOUTHERN UTES, COLORADO.

No change in the affairs of the Southern Utes has taken place since my last report. The patents for allotments have not been issued, nor have the surplus lands been opened to settlement.

The work of making irrigating ditches for the allotted tracts is rapidly approaching completion and will, it is thought, be finished this

season.

A work of considerable magnitude and importance will be the irrigation of the diminished reservation which is to be occupied by the portion of the tribe that refused to take allotments. The Indian appropriation act of June 7, 1897 (30 Stats., 62), authorized conference with the Montezuma Valley Canal Company, or other parties, for the purpose of securing a supply of water for this reserve. United States Indian Inspector Wright, having looked into the matter under Department instructions, submitted a report dated November 4, 1897, inclosing a proposition from the Montezuma Valley Canal Company to furnish the needed supply. The inspector's report and accompanying proposition were submitted to Congress by Department letter of February 7, 1898 (see Senate Doc. 124, Fifty-fifth Congress, second session). Under the provisions of an item in the Indian appropriation act for the current year, the Department is authorized to make investigation as to the practicability of providing a water supply for irrigation purposes on the diminished reserve, and this investigation is now being made, I am informally advised, through the agency of the Geological Survey

SEMINOLES IN FLORIDA.

The Department approved, April 16, 1898, the deed from Frank Q. Brown for a tract in southern Florida, described as section 32, township 47 south, range 33 east, which was purchased for the Seminoles, and was referred to in the last annual report as requiring further papers

before being submitted to the Department. No further purchases of lands for these Indians have been made.

In all, the following lands have been purchased:

Sec. 25, T. 47 S., R. 32 E.; sec. 32, T. 47 S., R. 33 E.; secs. 23, 24, 25, 26, 35, and 36, T. 48 S., R. 32 E.; secs. 12, 18, and 24, T. 48 S., R. 33 E.; and secs. 7, 16, and 34, T. 48 S., R. 34 E.-fourteen sections.

My last report referred to the fact that many of the Seminoles had homes upon lands which had been patented to the State of Florida as swamp lands, and that this office, in its report of May 26, 1897, had made the following recommendation:

Where Indians are known to be located upon specified tracts, such tracts should be exempted from patent; that no person or corporation shall have color of right to deprive the Indians of their ancient possessions.

I also have the honor to recommend that there be inserted in the patent to be issued to the State a clause expressly reserving the rights of the Indians to the occupancy of lands possessed and improved by them at the date of the patent, that purchasers of lands may have notice of the rights of Indian occupants.

From "Land Decisions," Vol. 26, p. 117, it is learned that office report of May 26, 1897, was submitted to the Assistant Attorney-General for the Interior Department, May 28, 1897, who, on January 31, 1898, rendered an opinion, of which the syllabus reads as follows:

If it is made to appear that lands have been erroneously included in a certified swamp land list, and the patent has not issued thereon, the action of a preceding Secretary of the Interior in approving such list may be corrected by his successor. The status of the Seminole Indians, as occupants of public lands in the State of Florida, is too indefinite in character to receive recognition in patents issued under the swamp grant.

Lands occupied and cultivated by said Indians can not, however, be held as of the character contemplated by said grant, and if, on due investigation, lands so occupied and improved appear to have been cortified to the State under said grant, the certification thereof should be revoked.

June 8, 1898, the Commissioner of the General Land Office transmitted to this office the report of Inspector A. J. Duncan, dated March 19, 1898, on the subject of lands for the Seminole Indians of Florida, in which he recommended:

First. That the following public lands be reserved for the use of the Seminole Indians, to be held in trust for them during their occupancy. (1) All the public lands, hammocks and islands and the legal subdivisions of the marsh lands of which they constitute a part, which when surveyed would approximately be in T. 45, 46, 47, 50, 51, 52, and 53 S., R. 34 E., and in T. 45, 46, 47, 48, 49, 50, 51, and 52, S. R. 35 E. (2) What is known as Pine Island, with the adjacent hammocks and the marsh lands of the legal subdivisions of which they constitute a part, approximately situated as follows: Secs. 15, 16, 21, 22, 27, and 28, T. 50 S., R. 41 E. (3) All of what is known as Long Key, with the adjacent islands and marsh lands of the legal subdivisions of which they constitute a part, approximately situated as follows: Secs. 1 and 12, T. 51 S., R. 40 E., and Secs. 7, 8, and 9, T. 51 S., R. 41 E. (4) All of what is known as Miami Jims Island, with all the adjacent hammocks and marsh lands of the legal subdivisions of which they constitute a part, approximately situated as follows: NE. sec. 35 and the NW. sec. 36, T. 53 S., R. 40 E. (5) All the public lands and marsh lands of the legal subdivisions of which they constitute a part, approximately situated as

follows: Secs. 24, 25, and 36, T. 50 S., R. 41 E., and secs. 1 and 12, T. 51 S., R. 41 E. (6) All of what is known as Harneys Key and the marsh lands of the legal subdivisions of which it constitutes a part, approximately situated as follows: SE. † sec. 6 and SW. sec. 5, T. 53 S., R. 40 E.

Second. That a survey be made of all the unsurveyed lands approximately described above for the purpose of more definitely determining their character, situation, etc.

Third. That there be purchased for the use of the Seminole Indians, to be held for them during their occupancy, other lands adjacent to the hammocks and lands in first tract above described, not to exceed 56,000 acres and at a price not to exceed 20 cents an acre.

Fourth. That so much of the moneys appropriated on hand and unexpended for the education and civilization of the Seminole Indians, and hereafter to be appropriated, be applied to the purchase of the lands above referred to.

Fifth. That such isolated tracts as have already been purchased for the use of the said Indians be exchanged for other lands, in order to form a compact tract or reservation as part of the above.

Sixth. That the amount set aside for these Indians, including marsh lands, shall not exceed 350,000 acres.

Seventh. That in case the above land, hammocks, islands, etc., recommended to be reserved for the Seminole Indians be not sufficient and suitable for their support, that the said survey be extended to the southern or other parts of the Everglades, as may be determined upon in the future by the honorable Secretary.

Eighth. That the present site of the agency be removed to such a point within the purchased or reserved lands at such time as may be determined upon, and that a suitable and sufficient quantity of land be reserved for agency purposes, not to exceed 320 acres.

Ninth. That proper measures be instituted immediately for the purpose of carrying out the above recommendations.

I have not been advised what action has been taken by the Department or the General Land Office upon the foregoing recommendations.

INDIAN TERRITORY UNDER THE CURTIS ACT.

This act, which was approved by the President on June 28, 1898, entitled "for the protection of the people of the Indian Territory, and for other purposes" (30 Stats., p. 475, and p. 425 of this report), is probably the most important piece of legislation and will have the most farreaching effect of any act that has been passed by Congress relative to Indian affairs since the passage of the act of February 8, 1887 (24 Stats., 388), known as the general allotment act.

The Curtis Act provides for many radical changes in the government of the Five Civilized Tribes and the regulation of affairs in the Indian Territory. Its principal features are:

First. The enlargement and extension of the jurisdiction of the United States courts for the Indian Territory so as to include all causes of action irrespective of the parties, and so as to give those courts jurisdiction to try certain suits by or against the several tribes.

Second. The conferring of jurisdiction for police purposes on the courts and municipal authorities of Fort Smith, Ark., over a certain portion of the Choctaw Nation lying between the corporate limits of

Fort Smith and the Arkansas and Poteau rivers and extending up the Poteau River to the mouth of Mill Creek.

Third. The making of the enrollment of the tribes by the commission to the Five Civilized Tribes, known as the Dawes Commission, conclusive as to the membership of each tribe. This provision will, when executed, determine definitely the membership of the tribes and dispose of all claims to citizenship, which, as stated in another part of this report, have complicated the question of intruders.

Fourth. The allotment of lands in severalty to the members of the tribes by the Dawes Commission, so far as the use and occupancy of the lands may be concerned, reserving all minerals for the benefit of the tribes.

Fifth. The leasing by the Secretary of the Interior of the mineral lands of the different tribes under regulations to be prescribed by him. Sixth. Providing for the incorporation of cities and towns in the Territory under the provisions of chapter 29 of Mansfield's Digest of the Statutes of Arkansas, if not already incorporated under said chapter. Seventh. Providing for surveying and laying out town sites and for the appraisal and sale of town lots within the Territory.

Eighth. Providing for the payment of all rents and royalties due and payable to the tribes into the Treasury of the United States to the credit of the tribes, respectively, under regulations to be prescribed by the Secretary of the Interior, and prohibiting the collection of the same by any individuals for the tribe, but permitting the leasing by individuals of their allotments, except as to minerals.

Ninth. Prohibiting the payment of any moneys on any account whatever to the tribal governments for disbursement; providing that the payment of all sums to members of the tribes shall be made by a disbursing officer of the Government, under the direction of the Secretary of the Interior; and declaring that per-capita payments to be made direct to individuals shall not be liable to the payment of any previously contracted obligation.

Tenth. Directing the enrollment of the freedmen of the Chickasaw Nation and the allotment of lands to them, subject to the determination of their rights under the treaty of 1866 (14 Stats., 769), in a manner to be provided hereafter by Congress.

Eleventh. Declaring all grazing leases made prior to January 1, 1898, to be terminated on April 1, 1899, and all farming leases made prior to January 1, 1898, to be terminated on January 1, 1900, and all leases made subsequently to January 1, 1898, to be void and null.

Twelfth. Authorizing the segregation of 157,600 acres of lands in the Cherokee Nation for the Delawares, subject to the adjudication, by the Court of Claims and the Supreme Court, of the rights of the Delawares in a suit to be brought by them, and giving those courts jurisdiction to try such suit.

Thirteenth. Prohibiting the enforcement of the laws of the various tribes by the United States courts in the Indian Territory.

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