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Show XXIV REPORT OF THE COMM1SSIONEB OF INDIAN AFFAIRB. Indian lands, tribal rmervation, or lands specially set apart for Indisn purposes, shall for the first offense, npon convictiou thazeof. pay a fine of not more than five hnudrd dollars, md be imprisoned at hard labor for not more than one year; and far every subsequent oflense, shall, npon conviction thereof, pay a. fine of not more than ons thousand dollars, snd not leas than five hnndred dollars, and be imprisoned st bard labor for ~ omtor e than two yearn, nor less than one year; and tho wagons, teams and ootfit of such person or p m n a 80 offending shall be seized and delivered to the proper United States offiaurjand be proceedell ngaiust bg libel in the proper court and forfeited, one.half to the informer md the othez. half to the United States, nud in all canes arisio@nderthis set, Indians shallbe oompete~>vti tnesaes :P rodded, howecer, That the proviaions of this aection shall not apply to emigrants or travelers peaceably psssing throngh sbch Indiafl lands, tribal reserwlions, or lands especially sat apart fir Indian purposes, without cornlrkitting any willful trespaas or injury to persun or property." On the 10th February last the bill as wad and referred was reported back by the Senate Committee on Indian Affairs without amendment, but Congress again acljourned without taking action in the matter. While on this subject I desire to say a :'ew words in regard to the repeated attempts which have beau made by United States citizens during the past four years to unlawfully appropriate certaiu lands of the Indian Territory reserved under treaty b s the Gorer~~mefuotr Inciian purposes, under the pretext that such lands are open to the public for settlement. Pull accounts of these raids and of the measures taken by the Government to expel the iutruders will be found in the successive annual reports of this office for the year8 1879,ZS80,1881, and 1882. During the period referred to, D. L. Payne, the recogtlized leader of the movement, has been repeatedly arrested only to be released by the mili-tary authorities on the Kansas border, or held to answer to a, civil suit in the United States c o u ~att Fort Smith to recorer the penalty imposed by the statute, n soit il~rariablgte rminating without an1 pract,ial m-snlt. With each repetition the lnorement appears to acquire additional strength. Vrom official reports made to rhe War Department and ou file in this office, I learn that in the expeditiou wl~ich left Arkansas City for the Olilahoma lautls on the 1st Ecbruary last there were about. 250 persous, principal11 from Ha ~ ~ s aasu d Missouri, inclrtding some 20 women and chilclreu, with from 80 to 100 magous filled with provisions and forage sufficient to last them 30 or 40 days, and with tents, furnitnre, agricultural implements, kc. They appeared iu the main to be a well. to-do, quiet set of farmers, and a different class of people from those who had bee11 engaged in previous similar enterprises, but they were all well armed, mostly with Winchester rifies aud carbines, and among them it was reported there was one mau from Wichita, Kans., who had with him a full wagon-load of whisky and cigars, intending to open a saloon on arriving at their destination. Besides this party, there were other and smaller outfits which wero discoverecl and heard of LW route from Caldwell and Coffeyville, Kaus.: to join the main body. Those from Caldwell are stated to hare beell with one or two exce.l)tions persons without visible means of suppar4 |
