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Show GEIUERAL ALLOTMENT ACT. OPINION OF ASSISTANT ATTORNEY-GENERAL ON CERTAIN QUESTIONS ARISING UNDEB THE OPERATION OF THE GENERAL ALLOTMENT ACT. DEPARTBIENT OF TEE INTERIOR, OPFICE OF THE ASSISTANT A~TORNEY-GENERAL, Washington, U. C., June 22, 1889. SIR: On October 16, 1888, the rezister of the 1md office st Ashland, Wis.. by letter yueited ioatrucrioup fronu the Cuhminioncr o i the General (.and Office in regard to Intllnn nllotrnent* under the art ol Fehruarp 6. lPh7 (24S1at.. YH9). Thia letter wan re. fcrrrd to this 1)eonrtnbeut. and bs it to tho Commissioner of lutlinn Afsird. 1i.r roasid-erntion and rep&. Report was made by that offica on December 27, IRE@, and a furthar commnnication fmm it, on the same subject. was sent to this Department under dataof March 21,1889. Since then said a s ~ e rhsa ve heenreferred to me hv the First Assistant Seeretam".. f or mv ~ " views "on the &&ions herein propounded." - l'he Limt s e c r h ~of 11," act of Cuioress, referred co nhoee, provide that where Indiana ' arelueated upon a reservation the lands therhin may. by :~ntl~oriotyf the President, be allotted to them in certain ouautitie~: that ir. co each head d a tmlilv one-ouartrr aec-tion; to eaeh single pemn over eighteen gears of me, one-eighth of "a sectibn: and to each orphan chili oider eighteen, une.eighthof3 nection: and toevery other siog1':per-hon under ai~hteenth en livinr urlmrn prior to the I'nsident'a order, one-sixteutlr ni a rectiou: nro\i#lrd. that where tlleI:,n~lal rrooolv tit lor r r ~ z inaon r-es doable theaosn-tity is &he allotted. Section 2 of the act anthizes tGe hezs'of hmilies to selee<land for themsd~esan d their minor children, and the Government agents are to select the lands for the orphans. Section 4 provides that where any Indian "not residing upon s reservation, or for whose tribe no reservation has heen provided," "shall make settle-ment" upon any public lands of theunited States "not otherwise appropriated," he or she shall he entitly?, npon application to the 1-1 land-office of the district in which the land.- are located, to have the same allotted to him or her, and to his or her children, in anantities and manner as amvided in thisact for Indiansresidine nwn reservations." fi is thos seen that section-1 provides for sllatmente to Indians io&ted u ~ o nrm ervs-tianr, and acetion I lLr a l l o t ~ ~ ~torIunfd~ia ns not raiding npunarwrratian br tbrwhase t~i1.rn o r~a~r rat ioIulll a htrn matlc. In addition to thrw two g'ner.4 rlsadeq 111~In. - dians BR,. fur tlk DUrDOSrd of this act. mbdividrd into two U I ~ U r h * s . namelv. those above eizhteen years bf 8% and these under that am. Those above eighteen yarn of sge srp nein dhidr*l into tllose who am heads of fal;ilies and thore whokre s&lo ppr-suns, it beingerid<otlyi ntendvd that aingle persona ewer ri~l8tvcna nd ondtr twmtg.one rears of auv shoold. uro her r.8l.r. bc. weanled and trented ar ;&dolls. Those undereirrht- ;en yam are also diGided into the two'elasses wnstituting the mlnor children of heads af families and the children of deeeaaed parents. The language of section 4 is not verg elear, hut rather involved and confosed. It re-quires that the Indian applying far lend must have made previous settlement npon the tract. and therenpon he shall ''have the ,me allotted to him or her, and to his or her children, in quentities and manner as provided in this act for Indiansrmidingupon reser-vations." This language conld very well mean that the trnct settled upon was to be allotted to the extent of 160 acres to the settler aud his or herobildren as ioint tenants. patents therefor to be issned as provided in seotion 1. But virwior the act inall its Lmw, fhoa xntheringall its purposesand itswholeacope, it wottld seem that it muat hnvc been rla porpon. of Congrt.~to sllot to Indians not lisinw on a re~ersntiono. r ior whom no reservat~onh a8 hecn orovided. and to the minor child& of such India&, lands to the same exten& in the same manner, under the same rastrictions end limitations, mutatismstandis, as wereenacted in the caee of Indiansliving npon reaervs,tions; with the additional requirement, however, of aetoal settlement on the 9592 IND-31 481 |