CHEROKEE
FREEDMEN MEMORIAL
TO
THE CONGRESS OF THE UNITED STATES
PRESENTED
BY MR. CLAPP
THE CHEROKEE FREEDMEN
Mr. CLAPP. I present a memorial of the Cherokee freedmen and ask that it be printed in the Record and printed as a Senate document and referred to the Committee on Indian Affairs.
I desire to say that this memorial goes to the question of the right of enrollment, and that I may not be misunderstood I will state that I am not in favor of any general opening of the rolls, but if there are individual cases where it shall be ascertained that injustice has been done, I believe that they should be corrected.
I should like to ask the consent of the Senate that this personal statement may appear in connection with the memorial printed in the Record and as a document.
The PRESIDING OFFICER The
Senator from
Mr. BACON. I should like to inquire of the Senator before that order is made what the memorial is.
Mr. CLAPP It is a memorial of Cherokee freedmen setting forth that there are cases where injustice was done with reference to closing the rolls and leaving them off the roll.
Mr. BACON. How long is the memorial?
Mr. CLAPP About three pages.
Mr. BACON. I wish to say in reference to this memorial, that my position as to the printing of other memorials may not be misunderstood, that I recognize this is probably something a little out of the, ordinary and relates to a subject that may be entitled to a little more consideration than is usually the case.
Mr. CLAPP. Unquestionably. I think it is an exceptional case, and therefore I have made the request.
Mr. BACON. I understand furthermore it has reference to immediate legislation.
Mr. CLAPP. Yes, sir.
There being no objection, the memorial was ordered to be printed as a document and referred to the Committee on Indian Affairs and ordered to be printed in the Record as follows:
MEMORIAL OF THE CHEROKEE FREEDMEN
To the Congress of the
We, the undersigned, representing the Cherokee freedmen who have been wrongfully excluded from the final rolls of the Cherokee Nation of Oklahoma, do hereby memorialize Congress to enact legislation which will protect us in the rights guaranteed us under treaties between the United States and said nation, under the laws of Congress, and the rules and regulations of the Interior Department, and the decisions of the courts.
By the act of Congress of
Under the act of
It shall make a roll of Cherokee freedmen in strict compliance with the decree of the Court of Claims rendered the 3d day of February, 1896.
This direction was plain and simple, yet it was not obeyed.
The court in this opinion clearly set out the rights of the Cherokee freedmen, and we call your attention to the following extract:
Said commissioners, in ascertaining the identity of the freedmen entitled to share under this decree, shall accept what is known as the authenticated Cherokee roll, the same being on file in the office of the Secretary of the Interior, having been furnished to him, and purporting to have been taken by the Cherokee Nation in 1880, for the purpose of showing the number of freedmen entitled at that time to citizenship in said nation * * * and their descend ants.
The Secretary of the Interior in his letter of instructions told the commission what it should do, and had the commission followed the law and his instructions there would have been no trouble, but the commission did neither. He informed them that— The roll of 1880 made by the Cherokee Nation is to be accepted by you as conclusive of the rights of all persons whose names are found thereon and of their descendants to be enrolled by you, * * * no evidence was to be accepted tending to disprove the citizenship of any person whose name was upon the roll of 1880.
Notwithstanding the decree of the court and the strong language of the Secretary, the commission did fail and neglect to properly place upon the final roll the names of a number of freedmen who were on the 1880 roll. Many of the freedmen whose names were on that roll and their descendants have been and still are wrongfully denied membership in said nation, and they will lose their valuable rights unless some action is taken by Congress. There can be no reasonable excuse offered for the neglect of the Commission to the Five Tribes, for it was fully instructed what to do in regard to the Cherokee freedmen. (Please read letter of Secretary in his report of 1902, p. 124.)
Many of the people have lived in the Cherokee Nation all their lives, some of them have occupied and cultivated the same tract of land for from 30 to 40 years, and some were permitted to make tentative selections. They have raised stock and crops, built houses and barns, have developed the agricultural wealth of the Cherokee country. They have voted, held office, and exercised all the rights of citizenship. They applied for enrollment within the time fixed by law. All of them have been enrolled once as citizens and many of them twice by the Government, and these rolls have been approved by the Secretary of the Interior, and many of them, at various payments, were paid as members of the Cherokee Nation of Indians.
The act of Congress provided for the removal of intruders; none of these freedmen were disturbed.
Under the act of
By reason of valuable oil and gas deposits in the lands, which by rights belong to your petitioners, the same—worth many millions of dollars—we will lose, also be deprived of other property, and our homes if Congress does not give us relief.
We are satisfied that the records of the Interior Department cover all the facts, and that the questions involved could be settled fairly and justly within a very short time.
We therefore pray Congress to give us a chance to present our cases to a committee of Congress, to any court, or to the Secretary of the Interior. We know that we can establish our rights, and we are only asking for just and fair treatment.
Hoping that our memorial will be printed in the Congressional Record, printed as a document, and referred to the Committee on Indian Affairs, and that an act of Congress will be passed which will give us an opportunity to present our cases,
We are, respectfully,
JACOB B. WILSON, President.
NELSON GRUBBS, Secretary.