OPA

Conservation of timber resources on the Klamath Indian Reservation of south central Oregon is "of primary importance to the economy of the area and to the welfare of the public generally", Secretary of the Interior Fred A. Seaton said today in commenting on S. 2047, a bill that provides for Federal acquisition of all Klamath tribal lands.

In a letter of September 26 to Senator Richard Neuberger, chairman of the Indian Affairs Subcommittee of the Senate Committee on Interior and Insular Affairs, Mr. Seaton outlined the Interior Department’s tentative views on S. 2047 and promised a report and recommendation on it early in the next Congressional session.

The two problems confronting both the Federal Government and the State of Oregon," the Secretary wrote, “are protecting the property rights of the Klamath Indians on the one hand, and providing for the sustained yield management of an important natural resource area on the other. Public ownership would accomplish both of these objectives. If there is any reasonable alternative to public ownership which would accomplish the same results, we believe such an alternative should be thoroughly explored.”

In connection with the Indians’ property rights, Secretary Seaton called attention to the Klamath Termination Act of 1954. As amended in the most recent Congressional session, this law provides for an end of Federal trusteeship over the Klamath Reservation by August 1960. It also gives individual members of the Tribe the right to withdraw the cash value of their pro rata share of tribal assets (consisting chiefly of the tribal forest) but provides that no sales of tribal timber land to satisfy this requirement shall be made until after the end of the next Congressional session.

“The essence of the 1954 Act,” said Mr. Seaton, “is that the Klamath Indians shall be freed of all Federal restraints because of their Indian origin, and ..... placed in the same status as other citizens …. Inasmuch as existing Federal and State laws do not require the owners of large forest resources to maintain them intact and to manage them on a sustained yield basis in the interests of conservation, the Klamath Indians should not be subjected to any such restrictions when the Fe

At the same time, however, the Secretary emphasized that the manner in which the Klamath Forest is managed will have "a vital impact on the life and economy of the entire Klamath River Basin."

"Kept intact through continued management according to principles of sustained yield, “his letter stated, lithe forest will remain a perpetually productive source of ponderosa pine and other commercial species e Such management would also insure continuation of its importance as a watershed. The large numbers of migratory waterfowl for which it now provides nesting and feeding grounds would be protected as would the deer and other species of wild animals that now find sanctuary within its boundaries, Further development of the forest's recreational potential would be made possible."

Referring more specifically to the problems that may arise under the law in its present form, Mr. Seaton had this to say: “lt is doubtful whether sustained yield management would be continued on a very large portion of the timber area if it is sold without restriction in small economic units. The management specialists, who have responsibility for the sales of these units, are obligated under the law to obtain on behalf of the withdrawing members the greatest possible return from these sales, This obligation means that a sizable portion of the area to be sold would have to be sold in small-sized units in order to obtain the greatest amount of competition possible. It is doubtful that such small units, within themselves, can furnish a sustained cut for even the smallest of sawmills."

The Klamath Tribal Forest comprises approximately 750,000 acres and has been described as one of the finest ponderosa pine stands in the country. The tribal property also includes marshlands which are highly important for waterfowl breeding and feeding p and constitute a key unit in the Pacific Flyway.

The wind-up of all Indian Bureau road maintenance responsibilities in Michigan has now been accomplished with the transfer of 18.3 miles serving the L'Anse Reservation and Potawatomie Indian lands to Barage and Menominee Counties, the Department of the Interior announced today.

The transfer, approved by the Indian Bureau September 20, is part of a nationwide program under which the Bureau brings the roads serving Indian lands up to county standards at Federal Government expense and the counties then take over maintenance responsibilities. Projects are now being turned over to the counties at the rate of over 400 miles each year.

Michigan is the second State where the Bureau has turned over all its road maintenance responsibilities. A similar transfer of final mileage was carried out in Iowa about five years ago,

The Bureau of Indian Affairs expects to enable about 500 adult Indians to enroll in accredited vocational training schools during the fiscal year that ends next June 30, Assistant Secretary of the Interior Roger Ernst announced today.

Under the Indian school vocational training program, the Bureau will not only provide tuition but also transportation to the place of training and subsistence during the course of study for the trainee and his immediate family dependents.

Because funds are limited for the program in its initial year, the Bureau is staffing for this work only at its area offices in Aberdeen, S. Dak.; Gallup, N. Mex.; Muskogee, Okla.; Phoenix, Ariz.; Portland, Oreg.; and in its field relocation offices at Chicago, Ill.; Oakland, Calif.; and St. Louis, Mo.

Applications may be received, however, from Indians in any area who need vocational training to secure satisfactory employment and who reside on trust or restricted land under the jurisdiction of the Indian Bureau.

Indian training in vocational schools is in addition to on-the-job training which is being made available to upwards of 700 Indians in plants and factories in Arizona, New Mexico, North Carolina, South Dakota, and Washington. Training of this nature will be in the fields of electronics, furniture manufacturing, toy and souvenir making, house-trailer manufacturing, and garment making.

Appointment of Turner Bear, Checotah, Oklahoma, as Principal Chief of the Oklahoma Creek Indian Tribe for a two-year term, beginning immediately, was announced today by Secretary of the Interior Fred, A. Seaton.

Mr. Bear is a full-blood Creek Indian who has taken an active interest in tribal affairs and is now a member of the Creek Indian Council. He succeeds Roley Buck who has served as Principal Chief since 1955.

Under a 1906 law the President was empowered to appoint a Principal Chief periodically for each of the so-called "Five Civilized Tribes" of Oklahoma -- Cherokee, Choctaw, Chickasaw, Seminole and Creek. In 1951 this appointing authority was delegated to the Secretary of the Interior.

The primary function of the Principal Chief is to represent the tribe on public occasions and in the execution of documents relating to tribal property.

Appointment of James N. Lowe, Sacramento, Calif., as Chief of the Indian Bureau is newly created Branch of Industrial Development was announced today by the Department of the Interior.

A veteran of 22 year's in Federal Service, Mr. Lowe joined the Indian Bureau in 1954 as a member of the Washington Office Program Staff and subsequently transferred to Sacramento where he has been serving for the past year as Assistant Area Director. In his new job he will move back to Washington and supervise the program to enlarge Indian job opportunities by encouraging the establishment of private industries in the vicinity of reservations.

The Branch of Industrial Development takes over the functions previously performed by Carl W. Beck, Assistant to the Commissioner, who retired September 30.

A native of Warren, Ark., and graduate of Oklahoma A. and M. College in 1924, Mr. Lowe was a county agricultural agent for 11 years in Oklahoma and Kansas before he joined the Soil Conservation Service in 1935. After eight years with the SCS in Kansas and South Carolina, he moved to the Board of Economic Warfare for one year and then served for 10 years in various branches of the United States Department of Agriculture before coming with the Indian Bureau. The position which he held immediately before transfer was industrial specialist with the Production Marketing Administration.

Award of a $404,743.80 contract for construction of 15,930 miles of access road into the Navajo Reservation, McKinley County, New Mexico, to the W. A. Hamilton, Jr. Construction Company of Gallup, New Mexico, was announced today by the Department of the Interior.

The Hamilton bid was the lowest of eight received with the other bids ranging from $443,688.44 to $524,951,04.

When completed by the Bureau of Indian Affairs and surfaced by the State of New Mexico, Navajo Route 3, running between U. S. 666 north of Gallup and U. S. 89 north of Flagstaff, will be an improved bituminous road. A short section of the road will be improved gravel surface and will be black topped at a later date.

The State of New Mexico will assume responsibility for future construction and maintenance when the Bureau of Indian Affairs contract is completed

Reappointment of Floyd E. Maytubby, Oklahoma City, Oklahoma, as Governor of the Chickasaw Indian Tribe for a two-year term beginning October 18 was announced today by secretary of the interior Fred A. Seaton.

In advising Mr. Maytubby of the reappointment, Secretary Seaton noted that he had served in the office "with dignity and integrity" since October 18, 1939.

Award of a $130,590.00 contract for construction of additions to Beclabito Indian School near Shiprock; New Mexico, was announced today by the Department of the Interior.

W. H. Elliott of Albuquerque, New Mexico was the successful bidder. Four higher bids, ranging from $136,992.00 to $175,561.00, were received.

Beclabito School, operated by the Indian Bureau, has a present enrollment of 88 boarding pupils. The new construction will provide space for 22 additional pupils and will convert the school to day operation. The contract calls for construction of a storage building, two 2-bedroom duplexes, alteration of an existing school building and construction of a new kitchen addition, outside utilities, and certain repairs,

The Department of the Interior today announced approval of a coal mining and electric power development lease by Utah Construction Company, San Francisco, Calif., embracing some 24,000 acres on the Navajo Indian Reservation just south of Fruitland, New Mexico.

The lease, which runs for 10 years and as long thereafter as the coal is produced "in paying quantities”, was signed on September 2) by Allen D. Christensen; president of Utah Construction, and on October 1 by Paul Jones, chairman of the Navajo Tribal Council. It was approved October 21 by Commissioner of Indian Affairs Glenn L. Emmons in his capacity as trustee for the Navajo tribal lands.

The area covered by the lease is a long, narrow strip of land about 25 miles in length and only approximately two miles across at the widest point. Within this area the company has the exclusive right to mine for coal and to develop thermal power facilities. The tribe, however, reserves the right to use or lease the surface of the area for other purposes wherever there will be no interference with the mining operations.

Rentals to be paid the tribe by the Company will be at the rate of 25 cents per acre for the first year, 50 cents per acre for the second and third years, and $1 per acre for each year thereafter. Royalty payments will be 15 cents a ton for coal and 10 percent of the f.o.b. sales price on all related products or byproducts recovered except for uranium which will be covered by the tribe’s existing Percentage Royalty Schedule.

Rental payments, which are to be made in advance in each year, will be credited against the royalty payments accruing in that particular year.

In addition to reserving the surface rights in the leased area, the tribe also retains the right to lease the lands for oil and gas development. Drilling and other related activities, however, will not be permitted, except with the approval of the Company, in a "corridor" 3,300 feet wide running the full length of the strip which the Company will designate for its exclusive mining use. Oil and gas pipelines may be built across the leased area, including the corridor, at three designated points provided that certain construction requirements are met.

The Company has agreed to sell the Tribe power at wholesale bus bar rates for use within the Reservation, to employ Navajo Indians when available and qualified and pay them prevailing wages, and to use the services of Navajo contractors whenever feasible in its judgment. It has also agreed to submit a full plan of development for the area to the Secretary of the Interior for approval within five years. If this requirement is not met, the lease is subject to cancellation.

Secretary of the Interior Fred A. Seaton today announced that representatives of the Department of the Interior and the Bureau of Indian Affairs will meet with Indian tribal representatives in Washington, November 25 and 26 for a national conference on American Indian youth.

The conference is being held under the sponsorship of Arrow, Incorporated, a nonprofit organization formed by Indians and their friends to assist Indian people in self-help projects. Its twofold purpose is (1) the exchange of ideas between Indian leaders, Indian youth, and non-Indians interested in the field of youth problems; and (2) the development and approval of additional programs to benefit the Indian young people.

The proposal that such a conference be held under the auspices of Arrow was first made to Secretary Seaton by the Midwest Inter-Tribal Council which represents a number of tribal groups in North Dakota, South Dakota and Nebraska. Subsequently interest in the conference has been expressed by tribal organizations in other sections of the country.

Arrow, whose headquarters are at 605 14th St., NW., Washington, D.C., is making arrangements for the conference and has extended the invitations to the Indian delegates. It is expected that 40 to 50 delegates, including both Indian youth and adult leaders, will be in attendance.