OCR Text |
Show miles west of the discovery well on the Hogback structure, three producing wells and one dry hole have been dnlled. The oil pro-duced from both these structures is from the sa,me formation and is enwnntered at a depth of about 800 feet. No 011 has yet been found on the other three structures. At the end of the year 16 wells had been drilled on the reservation, 8 of which are producers, with an estimated capacity of from 20 to 1,200 barrels per day each. Plans are under way for the construction of a pipe line to the field, which will mean a market for the oil, exuansion of the field, and more revenue to the Indians. & On the Southeru Ute Reservation in New Mexico, on which three wells producing large quantities of gas have been drilled under leases heretofore approved, five exploratory leases were sold on June 10, 1924, for a total bonus of $43,600. One lease brought $36,000, an exceptionally high price for a "wildcat lease." No oil has been discovered on the reservation, but as the lease? provide for imme-diate drilling operations, the question of oil In paying quantities will, no doubt, be determined durmg the current year. Following the decision of the Supreme Court of the United States in the case of Oklahoma v. Texas (256 U. S. 70; 258 U. S. 574; 261 0. S. 345; 262 U. S. 505, 734), holding, among other things, that allotments made to the Kiowa, Comanche, and Apache Indians on the north side of the Red River m Oklahoma include and cover the right and title to the river bed between such tracts and the mdial line of the river, a number of ersons, who had entered upon the river-bed land of these Indian a 8 ottees under attempted placer loca-tions initiated in accordance with the mining laws of the United States, applied for preferential rights to oil and gas leases based on the expenditure of money in the effort to discover and praduce oil. After careful consideration the conclusion was reached that, in the absence of an? wells having been completed producing 011 or gas in paying uantities,.leases on the areas riparian to the Indian allotments shojd, in the interest of the Indians, bs offered at public auction to the highest responsible bidder, with the understanding, however, that any property, either machinery or casing, placed by placer claimants on the lands to be sold, may be removed by them in event they are not the successful bidders. INDIAN EMPLOYMENT The year marked a steady gain in the number of Indians finding remunerative employment. The demand for Indian labor is greater than the supply, and no shortage of good wages and food prevails for Indians willing to work. Their wage service is increasing in agri-culture, railroading, land reclamation, in ,telephone, tele raph, and hiY h way construction, and wherever earnings are availaf le in beet fie ds, or by picking fruit, gathering nuts, herbs, wild rice, and other products. Automobile factor~esc ontinue to employ ambitious young men and advance them as their skill and experience warrant. Hun-dreds of Indian school graduates are givlng excellent service in Government and commercial positions, and approximately 2,000 Indians are employed in our service. The cotton fields of the Southwest are att~acting an increasing number of Indian laborers, and a fleet of trucks transports them to |