Ogden Evening Standard | 1910-08-26 | Page 7 | Osage Indians Richest in World

OSAGE INDIANS RICHEST !i! WORLD 1 PAWHUSKA, Okla.. Aug. 25. Testimony Tes-timony was given today before tho congressional committee that each of the 2.3011 OF.age Indians was worth $20,00(1, which on the per capita basts constitutes them the richest peopl in the world. As their property is held In restriction restric-tion by tho government, tho Indians have used ft great many lawyers, it was stated. Ono attorney -testified that he represented rep-resented twenty-three claimants, who demanded that the government place them on the Osage rolls, thus giving them tho right to $20,000 worth of property. The wealth of these claimants claim-ants if they were successful would n mount to $ I im;.C0. Another attorney testified that he bad been employed to oppose the claims on the ground that If they were allowed they would decrease the wealth of tho trilie. Attorneys' fees were paid to each of the Indians on the rolls and fees were paid for putting put-ting them on. A firm of attorneys declared it was to get a contingent fee of $42.0uO for securing to the Osage trl'-o sov hundred thousand dollars sai.l to oc due it by tho government. Information has been furnished the committee that many white people are anxious to induce the government to pay off tho Indians and settle up their estate. It was held that this would result In the Indians rapidly Fpendlng all their wealth and toon becoming be-coming charges of the state.