Page 717

REPORT OF INDIAN INSPECTOR FOR INDIAN TERRITORY.       717 
The tribal authorities of the Cherokee Nation having asked that 
certain small towns in the oil district be resurveyed, so as to divide 
the blocks into lots of smaller size, claiming the tribe would derive 
more revenue from the sale of such lots thereby, the Department 
directed, on August 3, 1904, that resurveys be made of the towns of 
Ochelata, Weldon, Watova, Hillside, and Ruby. Such resurveys 
were accordingly made and amended plats submitted to and ap- 
proved by the Department. 
It having been ascertained that an error in the description of the 
land upon which the town site of Muse, Choctaw Nation, was located 
had been made on the approved plat of such town, an amended plat 
was submitted correcting the error and approved by the Department. 
In addition to the towns heretofore established by the Government, 
as mentioned in my report for the fiscal year 1904, land has since been 
reserved for town-site purposes at Boynton, Creek Nation, and Tuttle, 
Chickasaw Nation. 
The land embracing both of these towns had been previously al- 
lotted and certificates of selection issued by the Commission to the 
Five Civilized Tribes, but for which no patents had been executed. 
By reason of existing conditions such allotments were canceled 
and this office directed to survey and plat the town of Boynton on 
January 4, 1905, and the town of Tuttle on May 27, 1905, and to have 
the lots within the limits of such town sites appraised by the proper 
town-site commission. 
One of the allottees who had selected part of the land included in 
the town of Tuttle was an intermarried citizen, not of Indian blood, 
whose restrictions had been removed, and had disposed of such land 
to a noncitizen. The latter applied for an injunction in the United 
States court to restrain the town-site commission from appraising 
and scheduling the lots therein. Hon. J. T. Dickerson, United States 
judge, in passing upon this application in an oral opinion, held that 
allottees have no title to their land and could not legally dispose of 
the same until patents had been issued, and that the Department could 
cancel any allotments prior to such time, and that, therefore, the 
Secretary of the Interior was authorized to take such action in this 
case and segregate the land for town-site purposes. The injunction 
was therefore denied. 
Owing to lack of funds for such purpose the platting of the 
town site of Boynton was made under the direction of this office at 
the expense of the town, and such plat was approved by the Depart- 
ment on May 15, 1905. The plat of the town site of Tuttle was 
made under the direction of this office at the expense Of the Govern- 
ment and approved by the Department June 27, 1905. 
This makes a total of 300 towns in the Indian Territory where 
land has been reserved from allotment and platted by the Govern- 
ment, the total area of land included within such town sites being 
62,958.79 acres, divided among the different nations as follows: 
Towns. Acreage. 
Creek Nation. .     .     .  .     .  ..--------------------------------------------------------..
26  10,694.10 
cherokee  Nation  .... ... .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. . . . .. .. .. .  53 
9,501.47 
choctaw Nation--------------------------------------.........--............
--90 i8,940. 40 
chickasaw Nation----------------------------------.......................
--131  23,822.82 
I