or may, whenever the chief executive of the Choctaw or Chickasaw Nations fails or refuses to appoint a townsite commissioner for any town, or to fill any vacancy caused by the neglect or refusal of the townsite commissioner, appointed by the chief executive of the Choctaw or Chickasaw Nations to qualify or act, in his discretion, appoint a commissioner to fill the vacancy thus created: Provided further, that the limits of such towns in the Cherokee, Choctaw, and Chickasaw Nations having a population of less than too hundred people, as in the judgment of the Secretary of the Interior should be established, shall be defined as early as practicable by the Secretary of the Interior in the same manner as provided for towns having over two hundred people under existing law, and the same shall not be subject to allotment. That the land so segregated and reserved from allotment shall be disposed of, in such manner as the Secretary of the Interior may direct, by a townsite commission, one member to be appointed by the Secretary of the Interior and one by the executive of the nation in which such land is located; proceeds arising from the disposition of such lands to be applied in like manner as the proceeds of other lands in townsites." § 380. Townsite commission is abolished and duties devolved upon Secretary.-Provided, that the several townsite commissions in the Choctaw, Chickasaw, Creek, and Cherokee Nations shall, upon the completion of the appraisement of the town lots in their respective nations, be abolished by the Secretary of the Interior at such time as in his judgment it is considered proper; and all unfinished work of such commissions, the sale of town lots at public auctions, disposition of contests, the determination of the rights of the claimants, and the closing up of all other minor matters appertaining thereto shall be performed by the Secretary of the Interior under such rules and regulations • From Act May 27, 1902, c. 888, 32 Stat. 259. as he may prescribe: Provided further, that all unsold lots, the disposition of which is required by public auction, shall be offered for sale and disposed of from time to time by the Secretary of the Interior for the best obtainable price as will in his judgment best subserve the interests of the several tribes; and the various provisions of law in conflict herewith are modified accordingly." 381. Commission's work transferred to Secretary.— Provided, that the work of completing the unfinished business, if any, of the Commission to the Five Civilized Tribes shall devolve upon the Secretary of the Interior, and that all the powers heretofore granted to the said Commission to the Five Civilized Tribes are hereby conferred upon the said Secretary on and after the first of July, nineteen hundred and five.8 7 From Act March 3, 1905, c. 1479, 33 Stat. 1059. 8 From Act March 3, 1905, c. 1479, 33 Stat. 1060. CHAPTER 41 MISCELLANEOUS LEGISLATION APPLICABLE TO FIVE CIVILIZED TRIBES § 382. 383. Government of Indian Territory. Approval of acts of Indian councils required. 384. Acts of Cherokee or Creek Councils not binding until ap proved. 385. Timber and stone-Right to sell recognized. 386. Illegal cutting of timber prohibited. 388. Court of Claims to determine rights of intermarried whites. 389. Providing for additional judges. 390. Investigation of leases of allotted lands authorized. 391. Delaware-Cherokee controversy. 392. Joint resolution extending tribal government. 392a. Sale of land for schoolhouse locations authorized-Act May 29, 1908. § 382. Government of Indian Territory.-It is hereby declared to be the duty of the United States to establish a government in the Indian Territory which will rectify the many inequalities and discriminations now existing in said territory, and afford needful protection to the lives and property of all citizens and residents thereof.1 § 383. Approval acts of Indian councils required. That on and after January first, eighteen hundred and ninetyeight, all acts, ordinances, and resolutions of the council of either of the aforesaid Five Tribes passed shall be certified immediately upon their passage to the President of the United States and shall not take effect if disapproved by him or until thirty days after their passage: Provided, that this act shall not apply to resolutions for adjournment, or any acts, or resolutions, or ordinances in relation to negotiations with commissioners heretofore appointed to treat with said tribes.2 1 From Act June 10, 1896, c. 398, 29 Stat. 340. 2 From Act June 7, 1897, c. 3, 30 Stat. 84. § 384. Acts of Cherokee or Creek Councils not binding until approved. That no act, ordinance, or resolution of the Creek or Cherokee tribes, except resolutions for adjournment, shall be of any validity until approved by the President of the United States. When such acts, ordinances or resolutions, passed by the council of either of said tribes shall be approved by the principal chief thereof, then it shall be the duty of the national secretary of said tribe to forward them to the President of the United States, duly. certified and sealed, who shall, within thirty days after their reception, approve or disapprove the same. Said acts, ordinances, or resolutions, when so approved, shall be published in at least two newspapers having a bona fide circulation in the tribe to be affected thereby, and when disapproved shall be returned to the tribe enacting the same. § 385. Timber and stone-Right to sell recognized.Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, that the act entitled "An act to provide for the use of timber and stone for domestic and industrial purposes in the Indian Territory," approved June sixth, nineteen hundred, be amended so as to read as follows: "That the Secretary of the Interior is authorized to prescribe rules and regulations for the procurement of timber and stone for domestic and industrial purposes, including the construction, maintenance, and repairs of railroads and other highways, to be used only in the Indian Territory, or upon any railroad outside of the said territory which is part of any continuous line of railroad extending into the said territory, from lands belonging to either of the Five Civilized Tribes, and to fix the full value thereof to be paid therefor, and collect the same for the benefit of said tribes; Provided, however, that nothing herein contained shall be construed to prevent allottees from disposing of timber and stone on their allotments, as provided in section sixteen of 3 From Act March 3, 1901, c. 832, 31 Stat. 1077. BLED.IND.(2D ED.)-26 an act entitled 'An act for the protection of the people of the Indian Territory, and for other purposes,' approved June twenty-eighth, eighteen hundred and ninety-eight, from and after the allotment by the Commission to the Five Civilized Tribes."4 § 386. Illegal cutting of timber prohibited.—[2]. That every person who unlawfully cuts, or aids, or is employed in unlawful cutting, or wantonly destroys, or procures to be wantonly destroyed, any timber standing upon the lands of either of said tribes contrary to the provisions of this act and the regulations prescribed thereunder by the Secretary of the Interior, shall pay a fine of not more than five hundred dollars, or be imprisoned not more than twelve months, or both, in the discretion of the court trying the same." 995 § 387. Delaware-Cherokee controversy.-That the Delaware-Cherokee citizens who have made improvements, or are in rightful possession of such improvements, in the Cherokee Nation at the time of the passage of this act shall have the right to first select from said improved lands their allotments, and thereafter, for a period of six months, shall have the right to sell the improvements upon their surplus holdings of lands to other citizens of the Cherokee Nation entitled to select allotments at a valuation to be approved by an official to be designated by the President for that purpose; and the vendor shall have a lien upon the rents and profits of the land on which the improvements are located for the purchase money remaining unpaid; and the vendor shall have the right to enforce such lien in any court of competent jurisdiction. The vendor, may, however, elect to take and retain the possession of the land at a fair cash rental, to be approved by the official so as aforesaid designated, until such rental shall be sufficient to satisfy the unpaid purchase price, and when the purchase price 4 From Act Jan. 21, 1903, c. 195, 32 Stat. 774. 5 From Act Jan. 21, 1903, c. 195, 32 Stat. 774. |