tive growth of the town, as the same shall appear at the time when such limits are respectively established: Provided further, that the exterior limits of all townsites shall be designated and fixed at the earliest practicable time under rules and regulations prescribed by the Secretary of the Interior.

"Upon the recommendation of the Commission to the Five Civilized Tribes the Secretary of the Interior is hereby authorized at any time before allotment to set aside and reserve from allotment any lands in the Choctaw, Chickasaw, Creek, or Cherokee Nations, not exceeding one hundred and sixty acres in any one tract, at such stations as are or shall be established in conformity with law on the line of any railroad which shall be constructed or be in process of construction in or through either of said nations prior to the allotment of the lands therein, and this irrespective of the population of such townsite at the time. Such townsites shall be surveyed, laid out, and platted and the lands therein disposed of for the benefit of the tribe in the manner herein prescribed for other townsites: Provided further, that whenever any tract of land shall be set aside as herein provided which is occupied by a member of the tribe, such occupant shall be fully compensated for his improvements thereon under such rules and regulations as may be prescribed by the Secretary of the Interior: Provided, that hereafter the Secretary of the Interior may, whenever the chief executive or principal chief of said nation 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 or principal chief of said nation to qualify or act, in his discretion appoint a commissioner to fill the vacancy thus created." "

6 Buster v. Wright, 135 Fed. 947, 68 C. C. A. 505; Buster & Jones v. Wright, 5 Ind. T. 404, 82 S. W. 855; Stanclift v. Fox, 152 Fed. 697, 81 C. C. A. 623, affirming Capital Townsite Co. v. Fox, 6 Ind. T. 223, 90 S. W. 614; United States v. Rea-Read Mill & Elevator Co. (C. C.) 171 Fed. 501.

§ 619. Townsites-Owner of improvements preference right to purchase.-[11]. Any person in rightful possession of any town lot having improvements thereon, other than temporary buildings, fencing, and tillage, shall have the right to purchase such lot by paying one-half of the appraised value thereof, but if he shall fail within sixty days to purchase such lot and make the first payment thereon, as herein provided, the lot and improvements shall be sold at public auction to the highest bidder, under direction of the appraisement commission, at a price not less than their appraised value, and the purchaser shall pay the purchase price to the owner of the improvements, less the appraised value of the lot.

§ 620. Townsites-Owner of right of occupancy preference right to purchase.-[12]. Any person having the right of occupancy of a residence or business lot or both in any town, whether improved or not, and owning no other lot or land therein, shall have the right to purchase such lot by paying one-half of the appraised value thereof.

§ 621. Townsites-Person in lawful possession preference right to purchase.-[13]. Any person holding lands within a town occupied by him as a home, also any person who had at the time of signing this agreement purchased any lot, tract, or parcel of land from any person in legal possession at the time, shall have the right to purchase the lot embraced in same by paying one-half of the appraised value thereof, not, however, exceeding four acres.

§ 622. Townsites-Sale at public auction.-[14]. All town lots not having thereon improvements, other than temporary buildings, fencing, and tillage, the sale or disposition of which is not herein otherwise specifically provided for, shall be sold within twelve months after their appraisement, under direction of the Secretary of the Interior, after due advertisement, at public auction to the highest bidder at not less than their appraised value.

Any person having the right of occupancy of lands in any

town which has been or may be laid out into town lots, to be sold at public auction as above, shall have the right to purchase one-fourth of all the lots into which such lands may have been divided at two-thirds of their appraised value.

§ 623. Purchase of town lots.-[15]. When the appraisement of any town lot is made, upon which any person has improvements as aforesaid, said appraisement commission shall notify him of the amount of said appraisement, and he shall, within sixty days thereafter, make payment of ten per centum of the amount due for the lot, as herein provided, and four months thereafter he shall pay fifteen per centum additional, and the remainder of the purchase money in three equal annual installments, without interest.

Any person who may purchase an unimproved lot shall proceed to make payment for same in such time and manner as herein provided for the payment of sums due on improved lots, and if in any case any amount be not paid when due, it shall thereafter bear interest at the rate of ten per centum per annum until paid. The purchaser may in any case at any time make full payment for any town lot.

§ 624. Town lot exempted from forced sale.-[16]. All town lots purchased by citizens in accordance with the provisions of this agreement shall be free from incumbrance by any debt contracted prior to date of his deed therefor, except for improvements thereon.

§ 625. Town lots.-[17]. No taxes shall be assessed by any town government against any town lot remaining unsold, but taxes may be assessed against any town lot sold as herein provided, and the same shall constitute a lien upon the interest of the purchaser therein after any payment thereon has been made by him, and if forfeiture of any lot be made all taxes assessed against such lot shall be paid out of any money paid thereon by the purchaser.

§ 626. Cemeteries.-[18]. The surveyors may select and locate a cemetery within suitable distance from each

town, to embrace such number of acres as may be deemed necessary for such purpose, and the appraisement commission shall appraise the same at not less than twenty dollars per acre, and the town may purchase the land by paying the appraised value thereof; and if any citizen have improvements thereon, other than fencing and tillage, they shall be appraised by said commission and paid for by the town. The town authorities shall dispose of the lots in such cemetery at reasonable prices, in suitable sizes for burial purposes, and the proceeds thereof shall be applied to the general improvement of the property.

§ 627. Public buildings-Grounds for.-[19]. The United States may purchase in any town in the Creek Nation, suitable land for courthouses, jails, and other necessary public buildings for its use, by paying the appraised value thereof, the same to be selected under the direction of the department for whose use such buildings are to be erected; and if any person have improvements thereon, other than temporary buildings, fencing, and tillage, the same shall be appraised and paid for by the United States.

§ 628. Authorizing sale of lands.-[20]. Henry Kendall College, Nazareth Institute, and Spaulding Institute, in Muskogee, may purchase the parcels of land occupied by them, or which may have been laid out for their use and so designated upon the plat of said town, at one-half of their appraised value, upon conditions herein provided; and all other schools and institutions of learning located in incorporated towns in the Creek Nation may, in like manner, purchase the lots or parcels of land occupied by them.

§ 629. Authorizing conveyances to churches.-[21]. All town lots or parts of lots, not exceeding fifty by one hundred and fifty feet in size, upon which church houses and parsonages have been erected, and which are occupied as such at the time of appraisement, shall be properly conveyed to the churches to which such improvements belong gratuitously, and if such churches have other adjoining lots

inclosed, actually necessary for their use, they may purchase the same by paying one-half the appraised value thereof.

§ 630. Authorizing surveys.-[22]. The towns of Clarksville, Coweta, Gibson Station, and Mounds may be surveyed and laid out in town lots and necessary streets and alleys, and platted as other towns, each to embrace such amount of land as may be deemed necessary, not exceeding one hundred and sixty acres for either, and in manner not to include or interfere with the allotment of any citizen selected prior to the date of this agreement, which survey may be made in manner provided for other towns; and the appraisement of the town lots of said towns may be made by any committee appointed for either of the other towns hereinbefore named, and the lots in said towns may be disposed of in like manner and on the same conditions and terms as those of other towns. All of such work may be done under the direction of and subject to the approval of the Secretary of the Interior.

TITLES

§ 631. Conveyances to allottees.-[23]. Immediately after the ratification of this agreement by Congress and the tribe, the Secretary of the Interior shall furnish the principal chief with blank deeds necessary for all conveyances. herein provided for, and the principal chief shall thereupon proceed to execute in due form and deliver to each citizen who has selected or may hereafter select his allotment, which is not contested, a deed conveying to him all right, title, and interest of the Creek Nation and of all other citizens in and to the lands embraced in his allotment certificate, and such other lands as may have been selected by him for equalization of his allotment.

The principal chief shall, in like manner and with like effect, execute and deliver to proper parties deeds of conveyance in all other cases herein provided for. All lands or town lots to be conveyed to any one person shall, so far as