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Show REPORT OF THE COMMISBIONER OF INDIAE APFAlKS. LXI found in his possession, and shall moreover be liable to a penalty of five hundred dollars. Act of August 15, 18i6 (19 Stats., p. 200): And hereafter the Commissioner of In-dian Affairs shall have the sole power ani authority to appoint traders to the Indian tribes sod to make such rules and regulations as he may deem jostandproper, apeei. fying the kind and quantity of goods and the prices at which suoh gooda shall be sold to the Indiana. Act of July 31, 1882 (22 Stat%, p. 179): That 8ection twent,y-one hundred snd thirty-three of theRevised Statutes of the United Slates be, and the same is herebr, amended so that it shall read: "buy persol; other than an Indian of the full blood vho shall attempt to reside in the Indian country, or on any Indian reservation, as a trader, or to iutrodooe gooda, or to trade therein, without such iioenae, shall forfeit all merchandise offered for ssle to the Indians or found in his possesaiou, and shall moreover be liable to apeneity of five hundred dollars: Provided, That this section ahall not apply to any person resid-ing among or trading with the Choctaws, Cherokees, Chiokassws, Creeks, or Semi-noles, commonly called the five civilized tribes, residing in said Indian oountry, and belonging to the Union agency therein." Udder an opinion of the A~Si ~ t aAn tit ornepQeneral dated January 26, 1869, the proviso of the act of July 31, 1882, repeals section 2133 of the Revised Statutes so far as it relates to the five civilized trlbes, thereby relieving licensed traders in those tribes from being subject to the $500 penalty and to confiscation of goods. But it does not relieve them from the operation of section 2139, which forbids any one to trade with Indians in tlie Indian country without a license, nor from the operation of the act of August 15,1876, which gives to the Commissioner of Indian Affairs '' sole power and authority to appoint traders to the Indian tribes," ete. The Attorney-General adds: And it seems to me that the power to appoint "Indian traflers," and to prescribe rule8 ;and regulstions to govern their intercourse with the Indians, naoessarily csr-ries with it the power to revoke suoh eppointluents for a, violation of the roles thus prescribed. Analher question, however, is presented in this connection, to wit: Has the De-partment authority under section 2149, or under any other law or treaty, to remove a trader fmm the territory of eaid civilized tribe8 for a violation of its lawfd regu-lations I Section 2149 Revised Statutea provides that- "The Commissiannr of Indian Affair8 is authorized and required, with the approval of the Secretary of the Interior, to remove from any tribal reservation any person be-ing therein without authority of law, or whose preseooe within the limits of the reservation may, in tibe judgment of the Commissioner, be detrimental to the peace and welfare of the Indians. ' The quaat;ion here present8 itself as to whether or not the several territories of the civililired tribes ere "tdbal reservations" within the meaning of asid section, inas-muoh as most, if not all, of saidtribeaownthe fee-simple titlato their lands " In view of ' * * treatv" ationlatfons with the " clvilizcd tribes., w -her-eh vQ o-n--r Government has stipulated to keep vhite people off of their territory; and in view of the fact that no other Department of Government seems to he clothed nith the necesesrv aothoritv to carrv into effect these treatv- ati~ulstione.I tbink i t fair to & ~ ~ conclode that said section $149, Revised Ststotea, waa inteudad to give to the Com-missioner of Indian Affairs, under the approval of the Secretary, the same authority to remove white persons from the territory of these civilized tribes that he woulh have if they held their lands by a different acd loferior title. |
