| OCR Text |
Show aePOBT OF THE COMMISSIONER OF INDIAN AFPAIRS. 99 The current Indian appropriation act (34 Stat. L., 1026) provides t h a t the filing heretofore or hereafter of any lease in the omce of the United 8tates Indian agent, Union Agency, Muskogee, Indian Territory, shall be deemed mnstrnctive notice. Prior to this legislation ,there had been some doubt as to whether such filing was constructive notice. The oil fields of the Creek and Cherokee nations were rapidly developed during the year, and the production has materially in-creased. There has not been much development in the Choctaw, Chickasaw, and Seminole nations, but the prospecting there indicates the ultimate discovery of new fields which will result in many thou-sands of acres of land being developed for oil and gas purposes. Approximately 21,717,000 barrels of oil were produced in the Indian Territory during the last fiscal year, and it is estimated that on the 30th of June 18,000,000 barrels were stored in tanks in the Creek and Cherokee nations. Many Indians who have allotments in the productive fields receive each month royalties in very large amounts, many from $300 to $400 per month, several more than $2,000, and one more than $3,000 per month. In addition to the royalties, lessees offer large bonuses for leases on tracts within the developed oil fields, the largest cash bonus be'lng $43,000, paid for a lease an 20 acres within what is known as the Glenn Pool; a bonus of $25,000, in addition to a royalty of 124 per cent, was paid for a 160-acre lease on the allotment, also in the Glenn Pool, of Ernest Clayton, a deceased Creek citizen. DEPOSITS IN BANKS. The money accruing from the sale of Creek allotted lands and the royalties arising from lands of minors and incompetents is deposited at interest in selected banks, which are required to give bond, in a sum equal to the amount of the deposits, for the payment'of tkv de-posits and the agreed rate of interest. The amounts deposited during the year and the balances on hand at the close of the last fiscal year, as reported by the Indian agent, are as follows : Deposits in baalcs. Name of bank hand. Total ............................................ ....I....... ............. |
