ÆäÀÌÁö À̹ÌÁö
PDF
ePub

purpose of prospecting for coal thereon, upon the approval by the Secretary of the Interior of a bond or undertaking to be filed with him as security for the payment of all damages to the crops and improvements on such lands by reason of such prospecting. Any person who has acquired from the United States the coal deposits in any such land, or the right to mine or remove the same, may reenter and occupy so much of the surface thereof as may be required for all purposes reasonably incident to the mining and removal of the coal therefrom, and mine and remove the coal, upon payment of the damages caused thereby to the owner thereof or upon giving a good and sufficient bond or undertaking in an action instituted in any competent court to ascertain and fix said damages: Provided, That the entryman or the owner under such limited patent shall have the right to mine coal for use upon the land for domestic purposes at any time prior to the disposal by the United States of the coal deposits.

SEC. 3. That the President of the United States shall appoint a commission consisting of three persons to inspect, classify, appraise, and value all of the lands described in section one of this act that shall not have been allotted in severalty to said Indians, said commission to be constituted as follows: One of the commissioners shall be a person holding tribal relations with said Indians, one a representative of the Interior Department, and one a resident citizen of the State of North Dakota. That within 20 days after their appointment said commissioners shall meet and organize by the election of one of their number as chairman. The said commissioners shall then proceed to personally inspect and classify and appraise, in 160acre tracts, all of the remaining lands described in section one of this act except section 16 and section 36 under such rules and regulations as the Secretary of the Interior may prescribe. In making such classification and appraisement said lands shall, without regard to the coal they may contain, be divided into the following classes: First, agricultural land of the first class; second, agricultural land of the second class; third, grazing land; fourth, timberland. That said commissioners shall be paid a salary of not to exceed $10 per day each while actually employed in the inspection and classification of said lands and necessary expenses, exclusive of subsistence, to be approved by the Secretary of the Interior, such inspection and classification to be completed within six months from the date of the organization of said commission.

SEC. 4. That for the purpose of carrying into effect the provisions of this act the sum of $10,000, or so much thereof as may be necessary, is hereby appropriated out of any money in the Treasury not otherwise appropriated: Provided, That the said appropriation shall be reimbursed to the United States from the proceeds received from the sale of the lands described herein or from any money in the Treasury belonging to the Indians of Fort Berthold Indian Reservation, North Dakota.

37 STAT. 631, APRIL 3, 1912.

COAL DEPOSITS RESERVED-FORT BERTHOLD RESERVATION. JOINT RESOLUTION To authorize allotments to Indians of the Fort Berthold Indian Reservation, N. Dak., of lands valuable for coal.

Resolved, etc., That allotments to the Indians of the Fort Berthold Indian Reservation, in the State of North Dakota, authorized

by section 2 of an act entitled "An act to authorize the survey and allotment of lands embraced within the limits of the Fort Berthold Indian Reservation, in the State of North Dakota, and the sale and disposition of a portion of the surplus lands after allotment, and making appropriation and provision to carry the same into effect," approved June 1, 1910 (36 Stat. 455), may be made of lands classified as coal lands or valuable for coal, with a reservation, however, in any patent which may issue upon any such allotment, of the coal deposits in the lands allotted, and of the right to prospect for, mine, and remove the same: Provided, That when such deposits are by Congress opened for disposition, any qualified coal claimant may enter upon these allotted lands for the purpose of prospecting for coal only after the approval by the Secretary of the Interior of a bond or undertaking given by such prospect or as security for the payment of all damages occasioned by reason of such prospecting.

37 STAT. 67, FEBRUARY 19, 1912.

COAL AND ASPHALTUM-SALE OF SURFACE.

AN ACT To provide for the sale of the surface of the segregated coal and asphalt lands of the Choctaw and Chickasaw Nations.

Be it enacted, etc., That the Secretary of the Interior is hereby authorized to sell at not less than the appraised price, to be fixed as hereinafter provided, the surface, leased and unleased, of the lands of the Choctaw and Chickasaw Nations in Oklahoma segregated and reserved by order of the Secretary of the Interior dated March 24, 1903, authorized by the act approved July 1, 1902. The surface herein referred to shall include the entire estate save the coal and asphalt reserved. Before offering such surface for sale the Secretary of the Interior, under such regulations as he may prescribe, shall cause the same to be classified and appraised by three appraisers, to be appointed by the President, at a compensation to be fixed by him, not to exceed for salary and expenses for each appraiser the sum of $15 per day for the time actually engaged in making such classification and appraisement. The classification and appraisement of the surface shall be by tracts, according to the Government survey of said lands, except that lands which are especially valuable by reason of proximity to towns or cities may, in the discretion of the Secretary of the Interior, be subdivided into lots or tracts containing not less than 1 acre. In appraising said surface the value of any improvements thereon belonging to the Choctaw and Chickasaw Nations, except such improvements as have been placed on coal or asphalt lands leased for mining purposes, shall be taken into consideration. The surface shall be classified as agricultural, grazing, or as suitable for town lots. The classification and appraisement provided for herein shall be completed within six months from the date of the passage of this act, shall be sworn to by the appraisers, and shall become effective when approved by the Secretary of the Interior: Provided, That in the proceedings and deliberations of said appraisers in the process of said appraisement and in the approval thereof the Choctaw and Chickasaw Nations may present for consideration facts, figures, and arguments bearing upon the value of said property.

SEC. 2. That after such classification and appraisement has been made each holder of a coal or asphalt lease shall have a right for 60

days, after notice in writing, to purchase, at the appraised value and upon the terms and conditions hereinafter prescribed, a sufficient amount of the surface of the land covered by his lease to embrace improvements actually used in present mining operations or necessary for future operations up to 5 per cent of such surface, the number, location, and extent of the tracts to be thus purchased to be approved by the Secretary of the Interior: Provided, That the Secretary of the Interior may, in his discretion, enlarge the amount of land to be purchased by any such lessee to not more than 10 per cent of such surface: Provided further, That such purchase shall be taken and held as a waiver by the purchaser of any and all rights to appropriate to his use any other part of the surface of such land, except for the purpose of future operations, prospecting, and for ingress and egress, as hereinafter reserved: Provided further, That if any lessee shall fail to apply to purchase under the provisions of this section within the time specified the Secretary of the Interior may, in his discretion, with the consent of the lessee, designate and reserve from sale such tract or tracts as he may deem proper and necessary to embrace improvements actually used in present mining operations, or necessary for future operations, under any existing lease, and dispose of the remaining portion of the surface within such lease free and clear of any claim by the lessee, except for the purposes of future operations, prospecting, and for ingress and egress, as hereinafter reserved.

SEC. 3. That sales of the surface under this act shall be upon the conditions that the Choctaw and Chickasaw Nations, their grantees, lessees, assigns, or successors, shall have the right at all times to enter upon said lands for the purpose of prospecting for coal or asphalt thereon, and also the right of underground ingress and egress, without compensation to the surface owner, and upon the further condition that said nations, their grantees, lessees, assigns, or successors, shall have the right to acquire such portions of the surface of any tract, tracts, or rights thereto as may be reasonably necessary for prospecting or for the conduct of mining operations or for the removal of deposits of coal and asphalt upon paying a fair valuation for the portion of the surface so acquired. If the owner of the surface and the then owner or lessee of such mineral deposits shall be unable to agree upon a fair valuation for the surface so acquired, such valuation shall be determined by three arbitrators, one to be appointed, in writing, a copy to be served on the other party by the owner of the surface, one in like manner by the owner or lessee of the mineral deposits, and the third to be chosen by the two so appointed; and in case the two arbitrators so appointed should be unable to agree upon a third arbitrator within 30 days, then and in that event, upon the application of either interested party, the United States district judge in the district within which said land is located shall appoint the third arbitrator: Provided, That the owner of such mineral deposits or lessee thereof shall have the right of entry upon the surface so to be acquired for mining purposes immediately after the failure of the parties to agree upon a fair valuation and the appointment, as above provided, of an arbitrator by the said owner or lessee.

SEC. 4. That upon the expiration of two years after the lands have been first offered for sale the Secretary of the Interior, under rules and regulations to be prescribed by him, shall cause to be sold to the

56974°-Bull. 94, pt. 2-15—14

highest bidder for cash the surface of any lands remaining unsold and of any surface lands forfeited by reason of nonpayment of any part of the purchase price, without regard to the appraised value thereof: Provided, That the Secretary of the Interior is authorized to sell at not less than the appraised value to the McAlester Country Club, of McAlester, Okla., the surface of not to exceed 160 acres in section 17, township 5 north, range 15 east: Provided further, That the mineral underlying the surface of the lands condemned for the State penitentiary at McAlester, Okla., under the Indian appropriation act approved March 3, 1909, shall be subject to condemnation, under the laws of the State of Oklahoma, for State penitentiary purposes: And provided further, That said mineral shall not be mined for other than State penitentiary purposes.

SEC. 5. That the sales herein provided for shall be at public auction under rules and regulations and upon terms to be prescribed by the Secretary of the Interior, except that no payment shall be deferred longer than two years after the sale is made. All agricultural lands shall be sold in tracts not to exceed 160 acres, and deeds shall not be issued to any one person for more than 160 acres of agricultural land, grazing lands in tracts not to exceed 640 acres, and lands especially valuable by reason of proximity to towns or cities may, in the discretion of the Secretary of the Interior, be sold in lots or tracts containing not less than 1 acre each. All deferred payments shall bear interest at 5 per cent per annum, and if default be made in any payment when due all rights of the purchaser thereunder shall, at the discretion of the Secretary of the Interior, cease and the lands shall be taken possession of by him for the benefit of the two nations, and the money paid as the purchase price of such lands shall be forfeited to the Choctaw and Chickasaw Tribes of Indians.

SEC. 6. That if the mining trustees of the Choctaw and Chickasaw Nations and the three appraisers herein provided for, or a majority of the said trustees and appraisers, shall find that such tract or tracts can not be profitably mined for coal or asphalt and can be more advantageously disposed of by selling the surface and the coal and asphalt together, such tract or tracts may be sold in that manner, in the discretion of the Secretary of the Interior, and patents issued for said lands as provided by existing laws: Provided, That this section shall not apply to land now leased for the purpose of mining coal or asphalt within the segregated and reserved area herein described. SEC. 7. That when full purchase price for any property sold herein is paid, the chief executives of the two tribes shall execute and deliver, with the approval of the Secretary of the Interior, to each purchaser an appropriate patent or instrument of conveyance conveying to the purchaser the property so sold, and all conveyances made under this act shall convey the fee in the land with reservation to the Choctaw and Chickasaw Tribes of Indians of the coal and asphalt in such land, and shall contain a clause or clauses reciting and containing the reservations, restrictions, covenants, and conditions under which the said property was sold, as herein provided, and said conveyances shall specifically provide that the reservations, restrictions, covenants, and conditions therein contained shall run with the land and bind the grantees, successors, representatives, and assigns of the purchaser of the surface: Provided, That the purchaser of the surface of any coal or asphalt land shall have the right

at any time before final payment is due to pay the full purchase price on the surface of said coal or asphalt land, with accrued interest, and shall thereupon be entitled to patent therefor, as herein provided. SEC. 8. That there is hereby appropriated, out of any moneys in the Treasury not otherwise appropriated belonging to the Choctaw and Chickasaw Tribes of Indians, the sum of fifty thousand dollars to pay expenses of the classification, appraisement, and sales herein provided for, and the proceeds received from the sales of lands hereunder shall be paid into the Treasury of the United States to the credit of the Choctaws and Chickasaws and disposed of in accordance with section 17 of an act entitled "An act to provide for the final disposition of the affairs of the Five Civilized Tribes in Indian Territory, and for other purposes," approved April 26, 1906, and the Indian Appropriation Act approved March 3, 1911.

SEC. 9. That the Secretary of the Interior be, and he is hereby, authorized to prescribe such rules, regulations, terms, and conditions not inconsistent with this act as he may deem necessary to carry out its provisions, including the establishment of an office during the sale of this land at McAlester, Pittsburg County, Okla.

37 STAT. 518, p. 534, AUGUST 24, 1912.

Amendment to 37 Stat. 67.

COAL AND ASPHALT LANDS-SALE OF SURFACE.

AN ACT Making appropriations for the current and contingent expenses of the Bureau of Indian Affairs, for fulfilling treaty stipulations with various Indian tribes, for the fiscal year ending June 30, 1913.

Be it enacted, etc., * * *

That the act of Congress approved February 19, 1912 (37 Stat. 67), being "An act to provide for the sale of the surface of the coal and asphalt lands of the Choctaw and Chickasaw Nations, and for other purposes," be, and the same is hereby, amended to provide that the classification and appraisement of such lands shall be completed not later than December 1, 1912.

37 STAT. 78, APRIL 5, 1912.

COAL LEASES CHOCTAW AND CHICKASAW NATIONS.

AN ACT Authorizing the Secretary of the Interior to permit the Missouri, Kansas & Texas Coal Co. and the Eastern Coal & Mining Co. to exchange certain lands embraced within their existing coal leases in the Choctaw and Chickasaw Nations for other lands within said nations.

Be it enacted, etc., That the Secretary of the Interior be, and he hereby is, authorized and directed to permit the Missouri, Kansas & Texas Coal Co. to relinquish certain lands embraced in its existing Choctaw and Chickasaw coal lease, which have been demonstrated to be not valuable for coal, as follows: Southwest quarter of the northwest quarter, south half of the southeast quarter of the northwest quarter, northwest quarter of the southwest quarter, east half of the southwest quarter, west half of the southeast quarter, south half of the southeast quarter of the southeast quarter, section 35, township 6 north, range 18 east; north half of the northeast quarter of section 2, township 5, north, range 18 east; embracing 360 acres, more or less; and to include within the lease in lieu thereof the following-described land, which is within the segregated coal area and un

« ÀÌÀü°è¼Ó »