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te 'fe 'fkyf m: ^J VOL. 1. The Indian Right and Wrong. 5*"WE hold these truths to be self-evident, that KLTU MEN are created equal that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable rights that among these, are X-IFE, LIBEiyPY, AND THE PURSUIT OF HAP- JA^^ffJ,"-Declaration of Independence, July In the Senate of the United States, Juno 20th, 1888. Mr. Morgan introduced the follow ing bill which was read twice and referred to the Committee on Indian affairs. A BILL. To establish police courts and to define their Jurisdiftlon smd. regulate judicial proceedings wltlmithe Indian res., and i'ur other purposes. Be it enacted by the Senate and "House ei. Representatives of the Uni ted States of America in Congress as sembled, That all persons, who com mit within the limits of- any Indian reservation offenses which are made punishable with death or imprison ment in tho penitentiary, or by sen tence to hard labor under the laws' of the 8tate or Territory in which such Indian reservation is located, shall be liable to indictment, trial, and pun ishnu nt for such offenses under the laws of such State or Territory and the court of competent jurisdiction over such offenses, which is held at the place that is nearest to the agency of such reservation at the time said offense is committed, shall have full power, so far as the United States can confer or consent to the same, to in dict, try, sentence, and punish such offender, when found guilty, in the same manner as if such offense were committed within the county in such State or Territory where such court is held. SEC. 2. That the right to sue and be sued in all civil actions shall be en joyed by any person residing or found within the limits of any Indian reser ervation in the same manner and to the same extent as if such person re sided or was found in any county of the State or Territory in which such reservation is located, but no person residing in such reservation, being an Indian attached to the tribe, or tribes, belonging to such reservation, shall be liable to be sueil in any county of such State of Territory that is outside of such reservation, except in cases relating to the title to lands, cases re lating to the administration of the es tates of decedents, cases of guardian ship, cases for the execution or ad ministration of trusts, cases for the recovery of chattels where the amount in controversy is five hundred dollars or more, and cases arising under con tracts, express or implied, where the amount in controversy is five hundred dollars or more. SEC. 3. That the civil actions men tioned in the foregoing section of this act shall be tried in the county of such State or Territyry in which the seat of justice is nearest to the agency of such Indian reservation at the time the suit is brougt. SEC. 4. That in all civil and crimi nal proceedings instituted in accortf ance with the foregoing sections of this act, the process of the court, whether original, mesne, or final, shall run to and be executed within such reservation in the same manner and j-* with the same effect as if the same were issued or executed within any county of such State or Territory. SEC. 5. That the judges of the In _dian police court hereinafter provided, shall have, and exercise within such reservation, all the powers of com mitting magistrates, with the same powers within such Indian reserva tions to commit for trial or to admit to bail persons accused of the crimes hereinbefore mentioned as belong to committing magistrates in like cases in any county of such State or Terri tory. "$_' (a SEC. 6.' That all proeess issued" in -cases, civil or criminal, of the de scriptions above in this act mentioed, which is to be executed within any Indian reservation, and all process is rsuing from the Indian police courts, "Jjshould be attested by the clerk of the J||||?/conrtin which such proceedings *is '"'.had, and shall be executed by the cap- ||t|feain of the police of the reservation itypjFJinto whose hands it shall come his S8H8 his 8UDOrdinates y&'l direction,or k3| shall be duly returned by him to the 7? '^court to which it is returnable: Vno- ^5P)J TIDED, That either of the judges of and ^"the Indian police court may issue .^.warrants of arrest in the criminal jps^.ff -Tv cases above mentioned in *i4. thiseact, ^'.J^ding to law, which shall be, in W~~i%manner, executed and returned. TK" np "."'on oath or affidavit duly mad accor- like -fn iS:','.,-'CC'\' iV Interior ^hall have power to appoint the members of the police courts, to consist of three judges, in any Indian reservation, who shall hold' office for the term of four years from the date of appointment, and until his success or is qualified, and who shall be re movable from such office at any time by the direction of the Secretary of the Interior. The agent of such In dian reservation shall be ex-officio the chief judge, and the other two judges shall be members of some tribe or band of Indians located within such reservation who can read and write the English language-. SKC. 8. That the salaries of ,th Indian judges shall each be sixty dol lars per month, and the Indian agent shall not receive any salary as such judge. SEC. 9. That the Indian agent shall appoint a competent clerk for said court, to keep the records thereof, who is authorized to issue and attest all lawful process in civil and crimi nal proceedings instituted in said court. Such clerk shall receive a sal ary of sixty dollars per month, and shall be removable at any time by the direction of the Indian agent. SEC. 10. That the Indian police courts shall have civil jurisdiction of all suits growing out of contracts, ex press or implied, of all suits for the recovery of personal property, and of all suits for the recovery of dam ages, where the sums in controversy in such suits are less than five hun dred dollars. SEC. 11. That the criminal juris diction of the Indian police courts shall extend to offenses that are not pnnishable with death, or with im prisonment in the penitentiary, or with hard labor according to the laws of the State or Territory in which said court is held, and, until otherwise pro vided by law, shall include assault and battery with such a weapon, or in such a manner as is calculated to produce death of great bopily horm, petit larceny, malicious mischief, and the violation of any regulation made and published by the Secretary of the Interior for the government of per sons on Indien reservations. SEC. 12. That the court of Indian police may inflict punishment for the violation of the laws or the regula tions adopted by the Secretary of the Interior upon persons duly convicted of such offonses by fine and imprison ment the fine not to exceed in any case the sum of five hundred dollars and the imprisonment not to exceed the period of one day for each half dollar of the fine so imposed, and the payment of the fine shall discharge the imprisonment from the day of the payment. SEC. 13. That the trial of offenses under the provisions of this act shall be upon presentment of the clerk of the court based upon an affidavit of an informer, or upon the order of any of the judges of the Indian police courts, and such presentment shall set forth, with reasonable certainty, the offense charged, and that it was committed by the person accused within the In dian reservation for which such court is held, and within one year before the proceeding is commenced. SEC. 14. That if any party to a civ ii suit, or any criminal proceeding, shall demand a jury for the trial of the same, he shall give notice, in writing, of soch demand, to the clerk of the court, at least days before such trial is had. Thereupon, the Indian agent for such reservation shall name six intelligent and impartial persons to constitute such jury, and require the captain of police, or any of his subdrdinates, to summon such persons to attend as jurors on such trial. The Indian police court may reject any of said jurors for good cause, and sum mon others to take their places. Said jury shall be sworn to faithfully, hon estly, and truly render their verdict impartially and without favor. The defendant in any civil or criminal case shall have the right to stand aside two jurors summoned and present at the trial, and the agent shall desig nate others to take the places of the jurors who are so excluded from the jury. The verdict of the jury shall be final in the case, unless it is set aside and anew trial is granted by the ma jority of the court. Neither the fa ther, son, brother, or first cousin of either party shall be a competent ju ror in any case, civil or Criminal. SEC. 15. That the court of Indian police shall have power to isBue at tachments against any party, or any (itnesB disobeying^the lawful .orders r&:': *'9'Ae'' or process of the oourt, and to compel the: attendance at the trial of any cause, civil djr criminal, and to punish persons guilty of con tempt of court. The court may punish per sons guilty of contempt of court or its process by line not exceeding fifty dollars and ln|- prisonment not exceeding twenty days f5 the the same offense. SEC 10. That the personal property of toe defendant in any judgment rendered by siiM. court may be sold for the satisfaction of tt|e same upon a writ of execution, after ten days' notice of the time and place of sale in writing posted on the door of the agency, and all pro cess of execution shall issue to the' agent 3 the Indian reservation in which such proper ty is found. Any property seized under efcg cution shall be placed in the custody of tfie captain of police until the same is sold. TraB necessary expenses of preserving any jorppe)^ ty levied upon under execution or atttuj&h mat shall bepirid-by ttarTJntted 9tates -fcHRk the Indian agent, and the sums so expended shall be lirstjeimbursed out of the procceds of the sale thereof before any partof the samo is paid to the person for whose benefit the ex ecution was issued. SEC. 17. That the courts of Indian police shall be courts ef record, and shall be furnish ed, as they are needed, books stationery, and suitable blanks for the convenient adminiH tration of tho business of such court, and rec ords shall be kept by the clerk, undor the su pervision of tho court, of the proceedings had and judgments rendered In such court. And the records of such courts shall bo received In evidence in other courts, when duly certified according to the laws of the United States, with the same effect as tho records of the State and Territorial courts are required to receive in evidence. SEC. 18. That a quorum to try causes, civil or criminal, shall consist of the agent of the reservation and one or more of tho judges of the Indian police courts. SEC 19. That this act shall only apply to such Indian reservations as the President shall from time to time direct, and he shall have power to direct that it Khali cease to ap ply to any Indian reservation until he shall give further 6rders for itB renewal therein. SEC 20. That this act shall not apply to tho Indian reservations of the Cherokee, Creek, Seminole, Choctaw., m- Chickasaw nations but an appeal shall ifPn the Supreme court of the United States from any final Judgment rendered by the court of last resort In said five nations, or tribes mentioned in this act, when the case includes a question arising un der the laws or Constitution of the United States, or any treaty with either of said tribes of Indians and the decision in such court of final resort is adverse to the right claimed under the Constitution, laws, or treaties aforesaid. And the Supreme court of the Uni ted States shall have power to enforce its judgments in such cases in the same manner as if said appeals had come up on writs of error to the snpreme courts of the States. And when any person is convicted in any State or Territorial court of any offense pun ishable with death, or imprisonment for Ufo under the provisions of this act, the person convicted shall have the right of appeal to the Supreme court of the United States on the law and the facts of the case, and said court shall hear and determine the same and ren der judgment therein according to law and justice, and in accordance with the rules gov erning appeals, In other like cases, from tho courts of the Territories of the United States. Had the White Earth reserva tion been excluded with the tribes mentioned in Sec. 20, or had the word "agent" been omitted in See's 7, 9, and 18 we would not have felt called upon to say a word for or agaiust the above measures. In our remonstrance against the bill we do not question the good intentions or motives which may have prompted its. introduction before the U. S. Senate, but past experience, with us, has taught a never to be forgotten lesson which has established the deplorable conviction that too much official indulgence has tended to the abuse of official power and corrupted the noblest pretext with which their mission were originally intended. To be candid, we are emphatically opposed to any, /measures that tends to confer additional privil eges to the "lord and maste r judge and jury" system which has characterized the management of Indian affairs, especially on this reservation, and turned to naught many of the noblest efforts of Con gress which were created for and in behalf of the Indians. #_.? And it would seeto to us, ancl as we understand "the above bill, that it savors too strongly of actocrat ic tolerance to he admitted with out question, in so far as the White Earth reservation is con* cerned. And any fair minded per son conversant with our reserva* tion affairs for the past three or four years will hot question our dilligence in "fighting shy" of any measures that has a seeming ten dency to confer additional stress Gwilization: The Maintenance of Law and Order." WHITE EARTH AGENCY, MINNESOTA, SATURDAY, JULY 14, 1888. to the judicial privileges of an In dian agent and the many political buffoons and arrogant official churls who seem ever ready to ''take his word aa agent*' and to aid and abet him, in any and all, of his nefariousdamnablepro- ceedings-against any persons on the reservation who might incur his displeasure^" -?^,'t-i: ^Therefore it would seem to us much more reasonable, and more in keeping with the broad, liberal American idea of thinking, did the establishment of such a court, the selection and appointment of its several judges, clerks,, etc., were left in a measure, or brought about by the popular will of the people, or if you please, by the ju diciary of the State in which such reservation may be situated. In which case the people could hope for "a government of the people, for the people, and by the people," and be spared the galling and in tolerable ignominy of the con temptible votary of arrogant au tocracy. Prize Studies of Tornadoes. The American Meteorological Journal, desiring to direct the at tention of students to tornadoes, in hopes that valuable results may be obtained, offers the following prizes: For the best original essay on tornadoes or discription of a tor nado, $200 will be given. For the second best $50. And among those worthy of mention $50. will be devided. The essays must be sent to eith er of the editors, Professor Har rington, Astronomical Observato ry, Ann Arbor, Michigan, or A. Lawrence Rotch, Blue Hill Meteo rological Observatory, Readville, Mass., U. S. A., before the first day of July, 1889. They must be signed by a nom de plume, and be accompanied by a sealed envelope addressed with same nom de plume and inclosing the real name and address of the author. Three inde pendent and capable judges will be selected to award the prizes and the papers receiving them will be the property of the Jour nal offering the prizes. 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