Page:United States Statutes at Large Volume 11.djvu/718

 674 TREATY WITH THE STOCKBRIDGES AND MUNSEES. FEB. 1856. majority of the Stockbridges in relation to the application of those funds, have been frequently disregarded, and at the present time Sam’l Miller has been sent by Austin E. Quinney as delegate to Washington with a part of those fimds, in direct opposition to the wishes of the majority. I proposed to Austin E. Quinney and his followers to patent to them lands at Stockbridge, and to make other stipulations favorable to them, if they preferred to remain there and to separate from the tribe; but as they would not declare their willingness to accept of such provisions, and as Quinney declared that he would probably desire to remove with the others if the lands to be selected were of good quality and deeming it more benencial to them, that they should remove with tlfe others and be settled by themselves, if they preferred it, in some corner of the new reservation, I did not feel prompted to provide for their remaining at Stockbridge, and increased the sums to be paid in proportion to their number. I had made no secret, since m visit to Stockbrid e durinv the fore art Y g e P of December last, of the arrangement contemplated in relation to lands and land-titles at Stockbridge (articles XIII. and XIV.,) and it appeared generally satisfactory to while settlers; yet there will be always found meddlesome individuals, and it appears that, at the request of a resident of Stockbridge, who, however, has no land himself, a lawyer of Green Bay had drawn up a petition or memorial asking the treaty to be amended. When I saw the document no names were attached to it, and I have not inquired afterwards, if it has been signed by anybody and forwarded. I read it very hastily; but it left the impression upon my mind that little legal knowledge was displayed by its author. Since the authority to issue patents given by the law of 1843 was destroyed by the repealing act of 1846, ahd the list of patents to lots to be granted under the treaty of 1848, is imperfect and incorrect, the settlers at Stockbridge, if they understand it, will be the last to object to authority being granted to the proper officer to issue patents; and the investigation of sales made by Indians providbd for, I think, will not be seriously objected to, except by such who are afraid that the consideration paid by them would be found to have consisted of whiskey. The minimum price tixed in the treaty for the land, to be sold by the United States government is not too high nor unjust to any class of the settlers at Stockbridge. 'Ilhose who settled there shortly after the treaty of 1848, and bought out, for a small consideration; the right of occupancy of Indians, to their houses, clearings, and nelds, have since mostly confined themselves to cultivating the fields already made and raised fine crops, without paying any taxes or bearing any of the hardships of a new settlement. It has not been so much by their labor that these lands have become valuable as by the settlements and improvements made in the surrounding couritry and the general prosperity of the State. The settlers who have recently squatted on lots of land at Stockbridge, have gone there with the perfect knowledge of the price which was expected to be fixed on those lands, and since it has become known that the treaty was signed, that part of the State has been under great excitement, and many have flocked to Stockbridge to make claims and to avail themselves of the privileges contemplated to be extended to actual settlers by the treaty. It is feared that there are even more settlers and claimants than lots of land, and if the price should be reduced, the excitement would, no doubt, become more intense, and the land officers would find it more difficult to settle the conflicting claims. The privilege of entering lands at the terms of payment, as prescribed for actual settlers, in ART. XIV., granted to a number of Indians by ART. XVI., was considered by all as very valuable, which seems to prove beyond a doubt, that the price is considered very moderate. If the petition above referred to has been signed generally by the settlers at Stockbridge, they have done so in consequence of its being represented to them, that it could do no harm to try to get the lands from the government at a less price, and not because the price is too high