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LEGAL DISPUTES CONCERNING TIDE LANDS ADJACENT TO THE HARBOR OF THE CITY OF TACOMA.

JANUARY 18, 1909.-Committed to the Committee of the Whole House on the state of the Union and ordered to be printed.

Mr. MARSHALL, from the Committee on Indian Affairs, submitted the

following

REPORT.

[To accompany H. R. 25406.]

The Committee on Indian Affairs, to whom was referred the bill (H. R. 25406) authorizing the settlement or adjustment of legal disputes concerning tide lands adjacent to the harbor of the city of Tacoma, having fully considered the same, recommend its passage.

The bill seeks to confer on the Attorney-General, with the concurrence of the Secretary of the Interior, authority to compromise or adjust certain litigation now pending in the circuit court of the United States for the western district of Washington involving title to a portion of the tide lands near the city of Tacoma, and also to authorize the settlement or adjustment of claims to certain other tide lands similarly situated, but not directly involved in this suit.

For some time members of the Puyallup tribe of Indians have intermittently claimed that their reservation included certain portions of the tidelands near Tacoma, and the surviving members and living descendants of the tribe appointed George Bird and others as their attorneys in fact to take steps toward the recovery of these lands or their value. A contract was entered into with Charles Bedford, an attorney, to institute the necessary proceedings. The contract for his employment came before the Secretary of the Interior for his approval, and the Secretary states that he considered it with great care. He recognized the fact that there was considerable doubt whether the suits would be successful, but, upon a modification of the contract, so that the recompense would be on a contingent basis and would be reasonable, he decided that, as representative of the Government in charge of the Indians, he had no right to refuse to approve a contract made by them unless he was positively certain that the purposes for which the contract was made could not or should not be attained.

The contract as modified was approved February 3, 1908, and, pursuant to the contract, suits were instituted against James M. Ashton and others to recover possession of the lands in dispute. These lands had been transferred to the defendants by the State of Washington. The institution of the suits naturally caused much disquietude among those holding title from the State of Washington to these and other lands.

The litigation concerning the title is delaying many important improvements, enterprises of a private character which would result in great benefit, these lands all lying within the harbor of the city of Tacoma.

This proposed legislation is satisfactory to the defendants in the case and also to the attorney for the Indians and to the Interior and Judicial departments of the Government, and seems to be in the interest of a speedy and just settlement of the controversy.

Section 1 of the bill seeks to confer on the Attorney-General and the Secretary of the Interior authority to stipulate a settlement which, with the approval of the court, will effectively and definitely determine the controversy.

Section 2 of the bill seeks to give the Secretary of the Interior authority to settle or adjust any claims of the United States and the Puyallup Indians to other tidelands not actually involved in the suit, but similarly situated, and to which similar claims are made by the Indians, and to which title is claimed by grantees of the State.

Section 3 merely relates to the disposition of the funds to be derived from the proposed settlement, and provides for carrying out the contract heretofore approved by the Commissioner of Indian Affairs and the Secretary of the Interior, and is incorporated in the bill so as to enable the Secretary to carry out this contract without unnecessary delay in the event of a settlement as authorized by the first two sections of the bill.

It seems to your committee that there can be no objections to the passage of this bill. The following letters from the Secretary of the Interior on the bill are made a part of this report:

DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR,
Washington, January 7, 1909.

DEAR MR. SHERMAN: I have just received your letter of January 7 requesting an expression of my views on the bill (H. R. 25406) authorizing the settlement or adjustment of legal disputes concerning tidelands adjacent to the harbor of the city of Tacoma. The members of the Puyallup Tribe of Indians have been intermittently claiming that their reservation included certain of the tidelands mentioned in the bill. Pursuant to this belief the surviving members and living decendants of the Puyallup Tribe of Indians, by the signatures of all of them, appointed George Bird and others, as their attorneys in fact to take steps toward recovering this land or its value. George Bird and his associates, on April 29, 1907, entered into a contract with Charles Bedford, an attorney, to institute such proceedings as might be necessary to recover the possession or value of said lands. This contract came before the Secretary of the Interior for approval, and was considered with great care.

I recognized the fact that there was considerable doubt as to whether suits under the contract would be successful, but when Charles Bedford agreed to a modification of the contract whereby his recompense on a contingent basis would be reasonable I decided that as the representative of the Government in charge of these Indians I had no right to refuse to approve a contract made by them unless I was positively certain that the purposes for which the contract was made could not or should not be attained. For that reason, on February 3, 1908, I approved the contract in a modified form, and this modification was formally accepted by Charles Bedford on February 11, 1908. Thereafter, and pursuant to the contract, Charles Bedford and Mr. B. S. Grosscup, of Tacoma, whom he associated with him, instituted suits against

James M. Ashton and others to recover possession of the lands in dispute. As I had foreseen and feared, the institution of these suits caused great disquietude among those who held title or alleged title to these lands acquired from the State of Washington. The State certainly had the power to dispose of tidelands unless they had been specifically appropriated for public use by the United States before the rights of the State attached.

It is alleged, and I am convinced it is a fact, that the interests of the people of Tacoma and those directly concerned in the title to the tidelands, demand the earliest possible and final decision of this troublesome question. Such a conclusion can be reached in two ways, either by a prosecution to final judgment or by some form of settlement or adjustment. I ain informed by representatives of the defendants in this case that they desire to have it within the power of representatives of the Government to settle or adjust these cases, and on account of the necessary delays in litigation they desire to make an offer of adjustment which will be deemed adequate and reasonable by the plaintiffs in these cases. Their principal reason for this, I am informed, is that the land lies in such a position adjacent to the harbor area of the city of Tacoma that it is likely to be in immediate demand for great and important business developments.

I do not believe that a settlement or adjustment which would be fair to all parties concerned can be made legally without the specific permission of Congress in some such form as is set forth in bill H. R. 25406. This bill was prepared after personal conferences on the subject between the Attorney-General and myself. I am convinced that it is necessary if the Government hopes to put a speedy and final end to the troublesome question of the rights of the United States and the Puyallup Indians in the said tidelands, and I therefore urge strongly that it be enacted into law.

You will notice that section 2 anticipates the possibility and probability of a settlement or adjustment of claims to the tidelands not yet included in any suit. I have reason to believe that this can be brought about, and with the authority contained in section 2 will take such steps as may be possible to prevent any further litization at this or any future time which might disquiet business conditions in that part of the city of Tacoma.

Section 3 was inserted for the reason that it is necessary to dispose of the proceeds of any settlement which may be made, and the arrangement proposed by the section is just and reasonable.

Very respectfully,

Hon JAMES S. SHERMAN,

Chairman Committee on Indian Affairs,

JAMES RUDOLPH GARFIELD,

Secretary.

House of Representatives.

DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR,
Washington, January —, 1909.

DEAR SIR: Pursuant to request, I have considered the bill authorizing the settlement or adjustment of legal disputes concerning tidelands adjacent to the harbor of the city of Tacoma. This bill was prepared in conference between this department and the Department of Justice. The Attorney-General wrote to me January 11, 1909, concerning this bill:

"I return herewith the draft of the bill authorizing a settlement in the Puyallup Indian Reservation matter. I know nothing about the contract with Charles Bedford, referred to on the second page of the draft, and for that reason can give no opinion as to the clauses of the bill affecting such contract. I see no objection, however, to the terms of the remainder of the draft."

The contract with Charles Bedford, referred to in the bill and in the AttorneyGeneral's letter, is one which was made with the Puyallup Indians and approved by me as representative of the Government in protection of the interests of the Indians. Inquiry at the Department of Justice discloses that the Attorney-General's remarks concerning that letter practically mean that he leaves it to me to explain the history, purpose, and propriety of the contract and of the provision in the bill for reimbursing Charles Bedford, under that contract, for such services as have led to the offer of a compromise, to effectuate which the bill was introduced.

There has been an intermittent claim by the Puyallup Indians since the admission of Washington as a State that certain tidelands claimed and disposed of by the State did not, as a matter of fact, pass to the State by the enabling act, but remained as part of the Puyallup Indian Reservation. If this claim were true the title to the land would be in the same condition as that of other lands in the Puyallup Reservation. As a result of these claims by the Indians, the surviving members and living

descendants of the Puyallup Tribe executed under the signatures of all of them a power of attorney to George Bird and others of their tribe to negotiate a contract for the bringing of suit to recover the value or possession of the disputed tidelands. These attorneys, in fact, after negotiations with Charles Bedford, consummated a contract with him on April 29, 1907, which provided that Bedford should perform all acts necessary to recover the tidelands and receive as compensation 50 per cent of the values recovered.

This contract was presented to me as Secretary of the Interior for approval pursuant to the requirement of law. I held it under advisement for several months, taking seriously into account the disturbance to titles which would follow institution of suits. When I found, however, that the existence of the contract, which was a matter of public knowledge, was actually disquieting titles, and when I considered that as guardian of the Indians I had no right to stand between them and the attempt to recover what they claim belongs to them, I decided that if Charles Bedford would accept a reasonable modification of the conditions for compensation it would be my duty to approve the contract. Consequently, on February 3, 1908, I approved the contract in the following form:

"After careful consideration of the attached contract between the trustees and attorneys in fact of the Puyallup tribe of Indians and Charles Bedford, of Tacoma, Wash., we hereby approve the contract, subject only to the condition that Charles Bedford shall formally accept the following modification:

"Instead of the compensation stated in the contract, he shall receive as full compensation for his services as attorney in connection with said contract 25 per cent of the proceeds from all compromises or sales of land recovered by virtue of his employment under the contract, one-half of said 25 per cent to be paid as soon as there shall be funds available from any compromise or sale, and the balance of 25 per cent to be paid on the termination of all suits or their discontinuance by agreement between the attorney herein named, or his attorney in fact, and the Department of the Inte rior, such compensation in no case, however, to exceed $30,000, and no compromise to be final and effective until approved by the Secretary of the Interior.

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On February 11, 1908, Charles Bedford formally accepted the above modification of his contract by entering upon the face of the modified approval the following words:

"I hereby accept the attached contract, with the modification as set forth, this 11th day of February, nineteen hundred and eight.

"CHARLES BEDFORD."

I am informed that the defendants to the suit which has been filed are ready and willing to make reasonable cash offer in order that the suit may be terminated by a decree which will forever set at rest the question of the title to the tide land involved. Personally, I believe that a speedy settlement of this kind is for the best interest of all concerned. I believe, however, that it is necessary for Congress to specifically authorize such a settlement in order that the decree may effectively quiet title, and also that the same act must necessarily provide for the disposition of the proceeds of settlement. Otherwise the money obtained might go into the general fund of the Treasury, and those properly interested in it, namely, the Puyallup Indians and Charles Bedford, would be obliged to go to Congress at a later date, and at great hardship and expense, to obtain the relief, which should properly be given in the act authorizing the settlement.

Very truly, yours,

Hon. JAMES S. SHERMAN,

JAMES RUDOLPH GARFIELD,
Secretary.

House of Representatives.

AUTHORIZATION TO ACCEPT DECORATION AND DIPLOMA.

JANUARY 19, 1909.-Committed to the Committee of the Whole House and ordered to be printed.

Mr. MCKINLEY, of Illinois, from the Committee on Foreign Affairs, submitted the following

REPORT.

[To accompany S. 5989.]

The Committee on Foreign Affairs, to whom was referred the bill (S. 5989) authorizing the Secretary of State to deliver to Maj. C. De W. Willcox a decoration and diploma presented by the Government of France, having fully considered the same, respectfully report to the House, with the recommendation that it be passed.

In support of their recommendation the committee adopt as their report the report of the Senate Committee on Foreign Relations.

[Senate Report No. 636, Sixtieth Congress, first session.]

The Committee on Foreign Relations, to whom was referred the bill (S. 5989) authorizing the Department of State to deliver to Capt. C. De W. Willcox a decoration and diploma presented by the Government of France, having had the same under consideration, report it to the Senate with the recommendation that it pass with an amendment as follows:

Line 3, strike out the word "captain" and insert in lieu thereof the word “major." The object of this bill, as indicated by its title, is to authorize Major Willcox to accept the decoration and diploma of "Officier d'Académie," tendered to him by the Government of France. The decoration consists of a silver laurel wreath denominated "Palmes Académiques," with a diploma informing Major Willcox that he has been appointed "Officier d'Académie." It is in no sense a military decoration.

This decoration and diploma are given in France as a recognition of literary or other work, especially in the case of army officers if the work is outside of their military duties. In this instance it is given distinctively as a recognition of a literary work.

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Major Willcox is the author of a very valuable work entitled "A French-English Military Technical Dictionary.' Originally published by the War Department in 1899 as Document No. 95, Adjutant-General's Office, it was republished in 1903 as Document No. 95, War Department, Office of the Chief of Staff. It is not merely a military dictionary, but also, within limits, a general technological and scientific dictionary, containing, as it does, more than 50,000 words relating not merely to military but also to technological and scientific subjects.

It is an official text-book of reference in the department of modern languages, United States Military Academy, West Point, N. Y., being issued by the library of the academy to cadets. It is also issued by the information division, General Staff, War Department, to officers and others doing translation work for the department.

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