Page:United States Statutes at Large Volume 30.djvu/547

 508 FIFTYFIFTH CONGRESS. Sess. II. Ch. 517. 1898. patents, except also his interest in the proceeds of all lands, coal, and asphalt herein excepted from allotment. Bmw ¤>f l¤¤·l That the United States shall provide by law for proper records of tm"` land titles in the territory occupied by the Choctaw and Chickasaw tribes., Railroads- RAILROADS. The rights of way for railroads through the Choctaw and Chickasaw nations to be surveyed and set apart and platted to conform to the respective acts of Congress granting the same in cases where said rights of way are defined by such acts of Congress, but in cases where the acts of Congress do not define the same then Congress is memoriahzed to definitely iix the width of said rights of way for station grounds and between stations, so that railroads now constructed through said nations shall have, as near as possible, uniform rights of way; and Congress is also requested to fix uniform rates of fare and freight for all railroads through the Choctaw and Chickasaw nations; branch railroads now constructed and not built according to acts of Congress to pay the same rates for rights of way and station grounds as main lines. Town sites. TOWN SITES. €¤¤¤¤i¤¤*¤¤ *0 MY It is further agreed that there shall be appointed a commission for °°° each of the two nations. Each commission shall consist of one member, to be appointed by the executive of the tribe for which said commission is to act, who shall not be interested in town property other than his home, and one to be appointed by the President of the United States. Each of said commissions shall lay out town sites, to be restricted as far as possible to their present limits, where towns are now located in the nation for which said commission is appointed. Plm. Said commission shall have prepared correct and proper plats of each town, and file one in the clerk’s office of the United States district court for the district in which the town is located, and one with the principal chief or governor of the nation in which the town is located, and one with the Secretary of the Interior, be approved by him before Appraisal of im- the same shall take effect. \Vhen said towns are so laid out, each lot ‘”°`°d 1°"‘ on which permanent, substantial, and valuable improvements, other than` fences, tillage, and temporary houses, have been made, shall be valued by the commission provided for the nation in which the town is located at the price a fee-simple title to the same would bring in the market at the time the valuation is made, but not to include in such _l’~¤r¤·l¤=n·~· hy 0“'|l•?T` V{\ll.l0 the ll!`lpI'0V€lll0Ill1S tl1Gl'€0n. The 0W11C!' of iii1G lmpl‘0V9lllGDtS Oll °* ‘"""°‘°“""‘°*‘ each lot shall have the right to buy one residence and one business lot at fifty per centum of the appraised value of such improved property, and the remainder of such improved property at sixty-two and onehnlf per centum of the said market value within sixty days from date of notice served on him that such lot is for sale, and if he purchases the same he shall, within ten days from his purchase, pay into the Treasury of the United States one-fourth of the purchase price, and the balance in three equal annual installments, and when the entire sum is paid shall be entitled to a patent for the same. In case the two members of the commission fail to agree as to the market value of any lot, or the limit or extent of said town, either of said commissioners may report any such disagreement to the judge of the district in which such town is located, who shall appoint a third member to act with said commission, who is not interested in town lots, who shall act with them to determine said value. qltgillsrv ¢·» r¤r¢¤¤¤•¤·- If such owner of the improvements on any lot tails within sixty days `to purchase and make the first payment on same, such lot, with the improvements thereon, shall be sold at public auction to the highest bidder, under the d1rection of the aforesaid commission, and the purchaser at such sale shall pay to the owner of the improvements the price for which said lot shall be sold, less sixty-two and one-half per cent of said appraised value of the lot, and shall pay the sixty-two and one-half per cent of said appraised value into United States Treasury,