OCR Text |
Show Lands on the Shoshone Reservation in Wyoming have been leased for oil and gas purposes for several years, and some wells have been brought in. Development has been slow and small returns derived from this source, owing largely to the lack of proper transportation facilities. The production of oil and gas in the territory of the Five Civilized Tribes is referred to under that head. OIL AND QAS XININci LEASES ON OSAGE RESERVATION. During the year there were leased 24,561 acres of the so-called un-leased portion of the Osage Reservation (consisting of approximately 800,000 acres) for oil and gas mining purposes under regulations raising the rate of royalty for the Indians from one-eighth to one-sixth, and providing for competitive bidding for Indian oil and gas leases. By the provisions of the act of June 28, 1906 (34 Stat. L., 539), all the minerals under the lands within the Osage Reservation were reserved to thetribe for a period of 25 years from April 8, 1906. In the early part of 1912 the 'Osage tribal council authorized the principal chief to execute four leases of about 200,000 acres each, covering the entire unleased part of the reservation. Notwithstand-ing the absence of departmental regulations on the subject, as re-quired by law, the four leases were resented to the department in the spring of 1912 by the Osage tribal council, with the request that they be approved. They were promptly disapproved by the Secre-tary on June 14, 1912, on the ground that they were not in accord with the beat interests of the Indians and contained someprovisions which were thought to be illegal. The department on July 3, 1912, prescribed regulations as required by the act of June 28, 1906. These regulations provided for offering the lands to the highest bidder under sealed bids. Approximately 107,000 acres were advertised for lease and the bids opened on November 11, 1912. The bids covered 42,210 acres, the bonus offered aggregating $143,438.65, an average of about $3 per acre. While the lands were under advertisement, the Uncle Sam Oil Co. continued its efforts tohave the lease executed in its favor approved in spite of the previous dehite disapproval by the department. . The Osage council passed a resolution rejecting all the bids received by it under the advertisement made in. accordance with the approved regulations of July 3, 1912, and refused to reconsider its action, despite a petition signed by a majority of the male adults in which the council was asked to accept the highest bids. The action of the council and the circumstances surroundmg the execution of the four leases were such that the department ordered a special investigation of the entire matter, and on receiving the report, the department issued an order removing the entire Osage tribal |