Page:United States Statutes at Large Volume 31.djvu/289

 FIFTY-SIXTH CONGRESS. Sess. I. Ch. 598. 1900. 237 of the Interior as Choctaws entitled. to allotment: Provided fiw·t}w7·, That all contracts or agreements locking to the sale or incumbrance ,_,§°”f,§“‘§,'iSi,,fg‘é,S°§f’; in any way of the lands to be allotted to said Mississippi Choctaws, éh_€>’<=ww` éiiomxiigiis shall be null and void. v°`d' To na r all ex enses incident to the survev, wlattin and a raise- S.Sg"'*’YS· °t¢·· tQW¤ ment lofi town siites in the Choctaw, Chickasaw}, Creelg? and C€1El‘Ok€€ agachiciiiilelilj Ciilgkd nations. Indian Territory, as required by sections fifteen and twenty- Chmkef “““°“S‘ nine of an Act entitled "An Act for the protection of the people of V°1‘3°*pp·5°°=i’°5· the Indian Territory, and for other purposes," a proved June twenty- eighth, eighteen hundred and ninety-eight, for the balance of the current year and for the year ending June thirtieth, nineteen hundred and one, the same to be immediately available, sixty-seven thousand dollars, or so much as may be necessary: Provided, That the Secre- _IY$’iS°i . tary of the Interior is hereby authorized, under rules and regulations 10i)s,e€c.Q c"mm°W° to be prescribed by him, to survey, lay out, and plat into town lots, streets, alleys, and parks, the sites of such towns and villages in the Choctaw, Chickasaw, Creek, and Cherokee nations, as may at that time have a population of two hundred or more, in such manner as will best subserve the then present needs and the reasonable prospective growth of such towns. The work of surveying, laying out, and —·S¤¤V<>v¤rsplatting such town sites shall be done by competent surveyors, who shall prepare five copies of the plat of each town site which, when the —f¤i¤sv1¤¢¤. survey is approved by the Secretary of the Interior, shall be Bled as follows: One in the office of the Commissioner of Indian Affairs, one with the principal chief of the nation, one with the clerk of the court within the territorial jurisdiction of which the town is located, one with the Commission to the Five Civilized Tribes, and one with the town authorities, if there be such. Where in his judgment the best inter- —-contmcz work. ests of the public service require, the Secretary of the Interior may secure the surveying, laying out, and platting of town sites in any of said nations by contract. Hereafter the work of the respective town—site commissions provided S,W¤rg< b<>f c¤mmisfor in the agreement with the Choctaw and Chickasaw tribes ratified p1?o!§a1(i>fsii§1ii}ejr)il ap` in section twenty-nine of the Act of June twenty-eighth, eighteen hun- V°l·3°·¥’·5°5· dred and ninety-eight, entitled "An* Act for the protection of the peo- ' ple of the Indian 'lgerritory, and for other purposes," shall begin as to any town site immediately upon the approval of the survey by the Secretary of the Interior and not before. The Secretary of the Interior may in his discretion appoint a town- Creek and cherokee site commission consisting of three members for each of the Creek and ;§,Y{§1`S"°€ °°m"“s' Cherokee nations, at least one of whom shall be a citizen of the tribe and shall be appointed upon the nomination of the principal chief of the tribe. Each commission, under the supervision of the Secretary of the Interior, shall appraiseand sell for the benefit of the tribe the town lots in the nation for which it is appointed, acting in conformity with the provisions of any then existing Act of Congress or agreement with the tribe approved by Congress. The agreement of any two members of the commission as to the true value of any lot shall constitute a determination thereof, subject to the approval of the Secretary of the Interior, and if no two members are able to agree the matter shall be determined by such Secretary. VVhere in his judgment the public interests will be thereby sub- Choctaw, Chickaserved, the Secretary of the Interior may appoint in the Choctaw, §”é`;‘§l§‘i$§,3§nd Chem Chickasaw, Creek, or Cherokee Nation a separate town-site commis- c(§g’g;§;z,'§X’;*‘§§$ sion for any town, in which event as to that town such loca] commission towns. may exercise the same authority and perform the same duties which would otherwise devolve upon the commission for that Nation. Every such local commission shall be appointed in the manner provided in the Act approved June twenty-eighth, eighteen hundred and ninety- Vo1.30,p.500. eight, entitled "An Act for the protection of the people of the Indian Territory. " _ ~