Reporter's Statement of the Case The Commissioner further correctly determined in accordance with the act and reported that the value of the timber of all kinds standing upon the "ten sections" specifically referred to in the act of May 23, 1908, and upon the unappropriated lands on the islands and points in the act described was $914,830.09. Said commission correctly determined that the value of the five percent of merchantable white and Norway pine timber, more than ten inches in diameter, standing upon that portion of the 190,944.93 acres outside of the ten sections, islands, and points, and reserved for reforestation under the act of June 27, 1902, and of the ten percent of such timber reserved for said purposes under the act of May 23, 1908, was $336,684.33. In accordance with their findings aforesaid, the commission appointed under the act of May 23, 1908, on January 16, 1923, certified to the Secretary of the Interior an award totaling $1,490,195.58 made up of the following items: 190,944.93 acres at $1.25---. Values of all timber on ten sections, islands, and points. Total award__ $238, 681. 16 914, 830. 09 336, 684. 33 $1,490, 195. 58 An appeal to the President of the United States was duly taken by the authorized representative of the Indians within seasonable time, but on April 9, 1923, the award so made was approved by the President of the United States and thereafter certified by the Secretary of the Interior to the Secretary of the Treasury, who thereafter and on May 31, 1923, placed the same to the credit of the Chippewa Indians of Minnesota as part of the "permanent fund" created under the act of January 14, 1889. 11. The commission in its report to the Commissioner of Indian Affairs stated that the values of the lands and timber found by it, and set out in the preceding finding— meet the legal requirements of the Act of May 23, 1908, but exclude equitable considerations in that they make no provision for payment of the value of the white and the Norway pine below 10 inches in diameter or for any jack pine and hardwoods standing on lands other than Reporter's Statement of the Case the ten sections, islands, and points. Further, they do not include any interest at the rate of five per cent per annum which through delay on the part of the Government in carrying out the terms of the said act has been lost to the Indians for a period of 14 years. The findings do not include the value of 44,333 ft. board measure, of mature pine timber standing upon eighteen 40-acre tracts or lots which have been offered for sale, but for which no applications have been received; nor do they include the timber standing upon lands which through erroneous classification as agricultural lands have hitherto been excluded from timber sale advertisements and contracts, but from which 90 per cent of the merchantable timber should properly be sold for the credit of the Indians before a change occurs in the legal status of the lands. These equitable considerations which are fully set out in the report of the preliminary committee are here briefly discussed as follows: In his opinion of January 19, 1922, the Solicitor for the Department of Agriculture held that the use of the term "merchantable pine timber," in relation to lands other than the ten sections, islands, and points, showed a clear intention on the part of Congress to allow the Indians compensation only for timber reserved from cutting which was merchantable at the time of the passage of the said Act of 1908. Since the preponderance of evidence was to the effect that the white and Norway pine under 10 inches in diameter, and jack pine and hardwoods of all diameters was not commonly regarded as merchantable in 1908, it was the belief of the said Solicitor that no allowance should be made for such classes of timber in determining the amounts to be paid to the Indians. The Solicitor of the Department of the Interior concurred in this view. Because of these opinions the Commission in determining the amounts due the Indians excluded from their appraisal all such timber standing upon lands cut over under the Acts of 1902 and 1908. The Commission finds, however, that these classes of timber now possess well-defined and considerable commercial value, which as a matter of equity should be recognized by the Government; and, therefore, recommends that Congress be asked to enact legislation authorizing the appraisal of said timber and proper payment to the Indians therefor. The volume and the exact value of such timber have not been determined by careful estimate and appraisal; Reporter's Statement of the Case but superficial estimates and appraisals conducted jointly by representatives of the Indian Service and of the Forest Service during the fall of 1922, resulted in finding the value thereof to be approximately $1,060,887.70. Had the settlement authorized by the Act of 1908 been made promptly as the law required, the money due the Indians for the lands within the forest-190,944.93 acres at $1.25 per acre-amounting to $238,681.16, and for the five and ten per cent reserved seed trees of white and Norway pine amounting to $336,684.33, would have been credited to them on the books of the Treasury, and would have begun to draw interest at the rate of five per cent per annum-probably not later than January 1, 1909. The Indians to date have lost 14 years interest, or an equivalent of 70 per cent of the value which would have been found in 1908. The value of the lands plus that of the reserved timber would amount to a total of $575,365.49, which at five per cent interest for 14 years would amount to $402,755.84. Recommendation was made by your preliminary committee that remedial legislation be obtained from Congress allowing interest on these deferred payments. Your Commission is of the opinion that the Congress should allow a reasonable interest on the said deferred payments, as set out above, to compensate the Indians for all their equities in the lands and timber as above indicated. As shown on page 7 of the report of the preliminary investigating committee submitted under date of November 14, 1922, there are reserved within the National Forest 18 described parcels of land upon which there is mature pine timber. Repeated attempts by the General Land Office to dispose of this timber by sale have been unsuccessful because of lack of demand. Upon these lands there is a total stand of 15,833 feet of white pine and 28,500 feet of Norway pine. At the minimum rates fixed by law the value of this timber would be $183.17. According to the opinions of the Solicitors no allowance can be made for this timber under the Act of 1908, and as it cannot be sold there appears to be no way by which the Indians can be compensated for it, except through proper remedial legislation. Certain lands within the Forest bearing commercial timber were erroneously classified by the General Land Office as "agricultural," and therefore the timber thereon Reporter's Statement of the Case has been excluded from all timber sale estimates and agreements. A table furnished by Mr. J. D. Caldwell, Superintendent of Logging, General Land Office, dated November 27, 1922, describes the erroneously classified lands which contain merchantable timber and gives the total volume of timber thereon as 900,000 ft. of white pine, and 1,214,000 ft. of Norway pine. This has an approximate value of $20,000, but cannot be paid for under the Act of May 23, 1908. To fully protect the equities of the Indians your preliminary committee again submitted the matter December 14, 1922, whereupon recommendation was made December 16, last, to the General Land Office that immediate action be taken looking to the proper advertisement and sale of the timber in question in order that the proceeds therefrom might be placed to the credit of the Indians. 12. In the report of the Secretary of the Interior to the Chairman of the Committee on Indian Affairs of the House of Representatives, No. 27, 68th Congress, it was recommended that the Indians be paid the sum of $402,755.84 as interest on the award of the commissioners above described, and the further sum of $183.17 which was the fair value of 44,333 board feet of pine standing on 18 scattered tracts within the forest which the defendant had been unable to dispose of, and the further sum of $20,000.00 being the fair value of 90% of the white and Norway pine timber more than ten inches in diameter standing upon certain tracts within the forest which had theretofore been wrongly classified as agricultural lands and hence excluded from timber sale advertisements, all as recommended by the appraisal committee as set out in Finding 11. These three items amounted to $422,939.01. By act of March 3, 1926, 44 Stat. 173, there was appropriated the sum of "$422,939.01, with interest thereon at the rate of 5 per centum per annum from February 1, 1923, to the date of settlement, said total amount to be deposited to the credit of the Chippewa Indians of Minnesota as interest on the permanent fund arising under the provisions of section 7 of the Act of January 14, 1889, as authorized by the Act of February 28, 1925." Thereafter and on May 26, 1926, defendant credited the sum of $422,939.01, together with interest thereon from February 1, 1923, to May 26, 1926, in the further sum of $70,105.53 to Reporter's Statement of the Case "Interest on Chippewas in Minnesota Fund." Save and except for the award of $1,490,195.58 credited as described in Finding 10 hereof to the "Chippewas in Minnesota Fund" (which was the permanent principal fund provided for and created under the act of January 14, 1889, and the said sums credited as above set forth to "Interest on Chippewas in Minnesota Fund" (which was the non-interest bearing fund to which the interest accruing under the act of January 14, 1889, was credited), no payments have been made to plaintiffs or credited to them or their funds in any manner on account of the establishment of the national forest under the act of May 23, 1908, or for the value of any lands inIcluded therein. 13. December 5, 1923, a bill was introduced in the House of Representatives (H. R. 28, 68th Congress, 1st Session) entitled "A Bill to compensate the Chippewa Indians of Minnesota for certain equities claimed by them in connection with the settlement for the Minnesota National Forest," which authorized an appropriation out of the Treasury of the United States of the sum of $1,060,887.70 to be credited to the general fund of the Chippewa Indians of Minnesota arising under the provisions of Section 7 of the act of January 14, 1889. The bill was designed and intended to carry out the recommendation of the appraisal committee appointed under the act of May 23, 1908 (set out in Finding 11), wherein it was recommended that Congress be asked to enact legislation authorizing the appraisal of all merchantable timber on all lands classified as pine lands, other than the sections, islands, and points, and the five and ten per cent reserved under the acts of 1902 and 1908, for which the committee was unable under the terms of the act of May 23, 1908, to award compensation, and provide proper payment to the Indians therefor, which timber the committee on the basis of superficial estimates made by it fixed at the approximate value of $1,060,887.70. The bill was considered by a sub-committee of the House Committee on Indian Affairs, before whom an attorney representing the Indians appeared and objected on behalf of the Indians to the enactment of the bill into law if it was designed and |