Sioux Tribe of Indians v. United States, 4-55.

Decision Date07 November 1956
Docket NumberNo. 4-55.,4-55.
PartiesThe SIOUX TRIBE OF INDIANS, et al. v. The UNITED STATES.
CourtU.S. Claims Court

COPYRIGHT MATERIAL OMITTED

Ralph H. Case, Washington, D. C., for appellants.

Maurice H. Cooperman, Washington, D. C., with whom was Asst. Atty. Gen. Perry W. Morton, for appellee.

Before JONES, Chief Judge, and LITTLETON, WHITAKER, MADDEN and LARAMORE, Judges.

LARAMORE, Judge.

This is an appeal by the Sioux Tribe of Indians from an order of the Indian Claims Commission Docket No. 74 dismissing appellant's petition alleging that it was unconscionably compensated by defendant for 7,345,157 acres of its permanent reservation, more commonly known as the Black Hills, taken from it by the appellee pursuant to the Act of February 28, 1877, 19 Stat. 254.1 The claim is brought under section 2(3) and (5) of the Act of August 13, 1946, 60 Stat. 1049, 25 U.S.C.A. §§ 70a, 70, establishing an Indian Claims Commission and providing for the powers, duties, and functions thereof.

The facts of the case date back to September 17, 1851, at which time the Fort Laramie Treaty, 11 Stat. 749, was signed between the United States Government and the Sioux Tribe of Indians describing the territorial limits of the Sioux or Dahcotah Nation. As the result of subsequent gold discoveries and the resultant tide of white travelers across the Indian lands to reach the gold fields lying farther west, many conflicts between the whites and the Indians arose and resulted in the Powder River War following which the Treaty of April 29, 1868, 15 Stat. 635, was signed between the Sioux and the United States. This treaty was ratified February 16, 1869, and proclaimed on February 24, 1869, 15 Stat. 635, 647. The treaty, in addition to other land, set apart the above referred to 7,345,157 acres for the absolute and undisturbed use and occupation of the appellant Indians as their permanent reservation and further provided in article 2 that "the United States now solemnly agrees that no persons except those herein designated and authorized so to do, and except such officers, agents, and employés of the government as may be authorized to enter upon Indian reservations in discharge of duties enjoined by law, shall ever be permitted to pass over, settle upon, or reside in the territory described in this article".

The treaty also set forth requirements for any future cession of land as follows:

"Article XII. No treaty for the cession of any portion or part of the reservation herein described which may be held in common shall be of any validity or force as against the said Indians, unless executed and signed by at least three fourths of all the adult male Indians, occupying or interested in the same; and no cession by the tribe shall be understood or construed in such manner as to deprive, without his consent, any individual member of the tribe of his rights to any tract of land selected by him, as provided in Article VI. of this treaty."

At the time of the signing of the treaty it was known both to the Indians and the defendant that there was gold in the land though it was not known to what extent.

In the early 1870's many white settlers began invading the Indian lands and the United States, living up to its treaty commitments with the Indians, expelled these white people by military force. When, as the result of the Custer expedition in 1874, it became more generally known that there was gold in the Black Hills in paying quantities, the Hills were invaded by large numbers of white settlers and prospectors.

It became apparent to the President of the United States that it was imperative to have this land ceded to the United States not only for the protection of both the whites and the Indians but for the good of the entire country as well. Subsequent efforts were made by Commissioners appointed by the President to acquire the property by purchase. The Commissioners, however, were unable to get the consent of 75 percent of the male adults of the tribe as required by the treaty of 1868. Between September 20 and October 27, 1876, however, they did manage to get the signatures of nearly all the chiefs and about 10 percent of the male adults on an agreement ceding the Black Hills area to the United States Government and providing for certain compensation to be paid the Indians. This agreement was subsequently presented to the Congress and passed into law on February 28, 1877, supra.

It is undeniable that the ceded land was rich in gold and timber and contained huge expanses of arable lands. It is equally undeniable that at this time of history the Sioux Indians were entirely dependent upon the United States Government for their livelihood and had very little or no initiative to support themselves. They were incapable as farmers and indicated no inclination to mine the gold in their land. They were primarily hunters. Their plight was such that if they did not obtain their Government subsistence for one season they would have been reduced to starvation.

The treaty of 1868 contemplated that the Indians, with the assistance agreed to be rendered by the Government, would soon become self-supporting on their reservation. By the treaty of that year the United States agreed to provide the Indians with farming equipment, to furnish educational facilities for not less than 20 years, and to furnish each Indian with certain necessities for 30 years. The Government also agreed to pay the sum of $10 to each Indian while he roamed and hunted and $20 to each Indian who engaged in farming. In addition to these provisions, the defendant agreed to provide subsistence for the Indians for four years, this amounting to a total of $5,295,761.91 for the 4-year period. This provision was completely discharged by the disbursement of $1,314,000 under the Act of February 14, 1873, 17 Stat. 437, 456. Nevertheless, Congress continued to appropriate on June 22, 1874, 18 Stat. 146, 167; March 3, 1875, 18 Stat. 420, 441; and April 6, 1876, 19 Stat. 28, large sums of money for the continued subsistence of the Sioux Indians totaling about $2,350,000. The continuing appropriations were felt to be necessary, though not obligatory on the United States, as the Sioux were not yet self-supporting, contrary to the expectations of the 1868 treaty that they would be well on their way in that direction after four years.

It must be kept in mind that all the while these unobligated appropriations and payments were being made, hostilities existed between the Indians and the whites and, concurrently, the United States Commissioners were attempting to get the Indians to cede by treaty the territory in question as well as other lands.

On August 15, 1876, 19 Stat. 176, 192, another appropriation was made by the Congress to the Sioux Tribe for $1,000,000 but the act provided that none of it should be paid to the Indians while there existed hostilities between them and the white people. The appropriating act further provided that:

"* * * and hereafter there shall be no appropriation made for the subsistence of said Indians, unless they shall first agree to relinquish all right and claim to any country outside the boundaries of the permanent reservation established by the treaty of eighteen hundred and sixty-eight for said Indians; and also so much of their said permanent reservation as lies west of the one hundred and third meridian of longitude, and shall also grant right of way over said reservation to the country thus ceded for wagon or other roads, * * *."

The act went on to say:

"And provided also, That no further appropriation for said Sioux Indians for subsistence shall hereafter be made until some stipulation, agreement, or arrangement shall have been entered into by said Indians with the President of the United States, which is calculated and designed to enable said Indians to become self-supporting: * * *."

Faced with this, the above referred to chiefs and 10 per cent of the male adults signed the agreement which resulted in the Act of February 28, 1877, supra. The act provided in article V for the consideration to be paid the Sioux for the ceded territory. Under this article the United States agreed to provide "all necessary aid to assist the said Indians in the work of civilization; to furnish to them schools and instruction in mechanical and agricultural arts, as provided for by the treaty of 1868." It also stipulated that the United States would supply each Indian with a designated amount of rations as subsistence until the Indians "are able to support themselves." These subsistence commitments continue to be paid to this day and it is estimated that it will be necessary to continue the payments for many years to come at the rate of many hundreds of thousands of dollars per year as the Sioux are still incapable of supporting themselves without Governmental aid. As further consideration for the land taken, the 1877 act added 917,000 acres of grazing lands to the permanent reservation.

The appellant contends that the United States is guilty of duress in securing the signatures of the Indians that signed the agreement which led to the 1877 act ceding the land in question. As examples of the alleged duress, appellant points (1) to the appropriation act of August 15, 1876, supra, cutting off all future subsistence payments until the terms of that act were met, and (2) to other evidence in the record tending to show reprehensible methods used by the treaty commissioners to get the Indians to sign, such as, getting them drunk and then presenting the documents to them for signature. It argues also that such actions on the part of the United States constitutes unfair and dishonorable dealings.

Secondly, appellant contends that the compensation received for the lands it was forced to cede was unconscionable.

The Government denies that it acted unfairly or dishonorably and urges that the taking of the land in question, even though accomplished contrary to the...

To continue reading

Request your trial
13 cases
  • United States v. Sioux Nation of Indians
    • United States
    • U.S. Supreme Court
    • 30 Junio 1980
    ...initially ruled that the Sioux had failed to prove their case. Sioux Tribe v. United States, 2 Ind.Cl.Comm'n 646 (1954), aff'd, 146 F.Supp. 229 (Ct.Cl.1956). The Sioux filed a motion with the Court of Claims to vacate its judgment of affirmance alleging that the Commission's decision had be......
  • Sioux Nation of Indians v. United States
    • United States
    • U.S. Claims Court
    • 13 Junio 1979
    ...the Indians had already been paid, was incorrectly decided, although this result was later twice affirmed. Sioux Tribe of Indians v. United States, 146 F.Supp. 229 (Ct.Cl. 1956), vacated and remanded for further proof (see 182 Ct.Cl. 912 (1968)); United States v. Sioux Nation, 518 F.2d 1298......
  • AM. INDIANS RESIDING ON MARICOPA-AK CHIN v. US
    • United States
    • U.S. Claims Court
    • 2 Diciembre 1981
    ...467 F.2d at 1356. 36 Tlingit & Haida Indians of Alaska v. United States, 182 Ct.Cl. 130, 389 F.2d 778 (1968); Sioux Tribe of Indians v. United States, 146 F.Supp. 229 (1956). 37 Lower Sioux Indian Community v. United States, 30 Ind.Cl.Comm. 463 (1973), aff'd, 207 Ct.Cl. 492, 519 F.2d 1378 (......
  • National Indian Youth Council v. Bruce
    • United States
    • U.S. District Court — District of Utah
    • 10 Enero 1973
    ...553, 23 S.Ct. 216, 47 L.Ed. 299 (1903); Thomas v. Gay, 169 U.S. 264, 18 S.Ct. 340, 42 L.Ed. 740 (1898); Sioux Tribe of Indians v. United States, 146 F.Supp. 229, 235-236 (Ct.Cl.1956). This rule is supported by the fact that until 1871 Congress dealt with the Indian tribes by treaty alone, w......
  • Request a trial to view additional results

VLEX uses login cookies to provide you with a better browsing experience. If you click on 'Accept' or continue browsing this site we consider that you accept our cookie policy. ACCEPT