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such bargains and sale shall be, and are hereby declared to be, null and void, and of none effect; and the person so purchasing or buying any land of any Indian or Indians, shall further forfeit the sum of ten pounds, proclamation money, for every hundred acres by him purchased and bought, one half to the use of the public, the other half to him or them that shall sue for the same; to be recovered, by action of debt, bill, plaint, or information, in any court of record within this Government, wherein no essoin, protection, injunction, or wager of law, shall be allowed or admitted of.

[1778.]

An act for quieting and securing the Tuscarora Indians, and others claiming under the Tuscaroras, in the possession of their lands.

1. Be it enacted, &c. That Whittnell Tuffdick, chief or headman of the Tuscarora nation, and the Tuscarora Indians, now living in the county of Bertie, shall have, hold, occupy, possess, and enjoy, all the lands lying in the county of Bertie aforesaid; whereof they are now seized and possessed, (being part of the lands heretofore allotted to the Indians aforesaid, by solemn treaty, and confirmed to them and their successors, by act of Assembly, in the year one thousand seven hundred and forty-cight.) without let, molestation, or hindrance, clear of all quit-rents, or any public demand, by way of tax whatever to them, the said Tuscarora Indians, and their heirs and successors; and that they the said Tuscaroras, and their heirs and successors, shall forever be clear and exempt from every kind of poll-tax.

2. Ant whereas the said Tuscarora Indians, by nature ignorant, and strongly addicted to drinking, may be easily imposed on by designing pcrsons, and unwarily deprived of their said lands:

Be it enacted, That no person, for any consideration whatever, shall hereafter purchase, buy, or lease, any tract or parcel of land, now claimed by, or in possession of, the said Tuscarora Indians, or any of them; nor shall any person settle on or cultivate the said lands, or any part thereof, in his own right, or under pretence as acting as overseer for the Indians; and if any person shall, hereafter, purchase, buy, or lease, any lands of the said Indians, or settle on or cultivate any part thereof, in his own right or as overseer for the Indians, all such purchases, sales, leases, and agreements, shall be, and they are hereby, declared null and void; and the person so purchasing, buying, or leasing, settling on, or cultivating, the said lands, or any part thereof, shall forfeit and pay the sum of three hundred pounds, current money, for every hundred acres by him so purchased, bought, or leased, settled on, or cultivated, as aforesaid; one half to the use of the said Tuscarora Indians, the other to the use of him or her who shall sue for same; to be recovered by action of debt, bill, plaint, or information, in any court having cognizance thereof: Provided, That the said Tuscarora Indians may sell or dispose of their lands, or any part thereof, with consent of the General Assembly first had and obtained.

3. And whereas the chieftains and head men of the Tuscarora nation, living in the county, did, on the twelfth day of July, in the year one thousand seven hundred and sixty-six, for the consideration of fifteen hundred pounds, to them paid, by Robert Jones, Jun. William Williams, and Thomas Pugh, by indenture, under their hands and seals, demise, grant, and to farm let. unto the said Robert Jones, William Williams, and Thomas Pugh, a certain tract of land, lying in the county aforesaid, containing about eigh

thousand acres, more or less, bounded as follows, to wit: Beginning at the mouth of Deep Creek, otherwise called Falling Run; thence running up the said creek to the Indian head line; thence byt he said line, South seventeen degrees East, twelve hundred and eighty poles; thence a course parallel with the general current of the said creek to Roanoke river, and then up the river to the beginning; together with the appurtenances thereto belonging, to be held and enjoyed by the said Robert Jones, William Williams, and Thomas Pugh, their executors, administrators, and assigns, in severalty, for and during the term of one hundred and fifty years, as may more fully appear by the said indenture, registered in the county court of Bertie aforesaid, and ratified by act of Assembly, passed at Newbern, in the year one thousand seven hundred and sixty-six:

Be it enacted, That each and every of the persons entitled to claim under the demise aforementioned, or by grants from the persons claiming under the same, or either of them, and their heirs and assigns, shall and may have, hold, occupy, possess, and enjoy, the several shares, dividends, or parcels of the said land to them belonging, in as full, free, and absolute manner, and with the same legal privileges and advantages, in every respect, and subject to the same taxes, as if the said land had been originally granted to the said Robert Jones, William Williams, and Thomas Pugh, by Lord Grenville or by this State.

4. And whereas the said Tuscarora Indians, for good and sufficient reasons, and for valuable considerations, have, since the twelfth day of July,. one thousand seven hundred and sixty-six, and previous to the first day of December last, demised, granted, and to farm let, sundry tracts; or parts of land, lying in said county of Bertie, to sundry persons, as by indentures duly executed may more fully appear:

Be it enacted, That all the lands contained in the last mentioned demises, if the said demises were fairly, bona fide, and without fraud, made by, and obtained from, the said Tuscarora Indians, since the year one thousand seven hundred and sixty-six, and previous to the first day of December last past, shall not be decreed vacant lands, or be liable to be entered as such in the land office, unless the General Assembly shall hereafter so direct; but, nevertheless, shall be subject to the same taxes as other lands in this State are liable to.

5. And whereas, it is suggested by the said Tuscarora Indians, that unfair dealing has been used in obtaining one or more of the demises aforementioned; and they, the said Indians, have, at present, no mode for obtaining redress in such cases:

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Be it therefore enacted, That the commissioners hereinafter mentioned, or a majority of them, shall and may, upon complaint of the said Tuscarora Indians, in court or meeting assembled, that any person or persons has or have unfavorably or fraudulently obtained any grant or demise for lands to them belonging, since the year one thousand seven hundred and sixty-six, and previous to the first day of December last, summon the person or persons so complained against, or cause him or them to be, summoned, to appear fore them on a certain day, on the land in dispute, (giving at least ten days notice previous to the day in such summons appointed) then and there to answer the complaints of the Indians, for having fraudulently or unfairly obtained a grant or demise of the land in question; and shail also summon, or cause to be summoned, a jury of twelve men, being freeholders in the said county of Bertie, and not resident on, or owners of, any lands purchased of

the said Tuscarora Indians; and the said commissioners, or a majority of them, shall attend at the time and place appointed, with the jury aforesaid, and having first sworn the jury to try and determine fairly between the said Indians, and the person or persons complained against, shall and may cause witnesses to be examined on both sides, and receive the verdict of the jury, and return the same, with the pannel, to the next county court of the said county of Bertie, to be entered upon record; and such verdict shall be as good and effectual as if obtained in any court of record; and if the same be general, the said commissioners, or a majority of them, shall and may appoint one or more person or persons to carry the same into execution; but if special, then the court shall decide thereon, and cause the sheriff of the county to carry such decision into execution.

6. And whereas the said Indians are often injured by horses, cattle, and hogs, driven on their lands by the white people, the said horses, cattle, and hogs, breaking into their inclosures, and destroying their corn and other effects; and are also frequently deprived of their property, and abused by ill disposed persons: for remedy whereof, and also for recovery of rents and demands now due, or which may hereafter become due and owing to the said Tuscarora Indians:

Be it enacted, That William Williams, Thomas Pugh, Willie Jones, Simon Turner, and Zedekiah Stone, be, and they are hereby, appointed commissioners for the said Indians; and they, or any three of them, shall and may inquire into the complaint made by the said Indians, summon the persons complained against before them, and award such restitution and redress as to them shall seem just and necessary; and may appoint an officer or officers to serve subpoenas, and execute such awards and determinations as they shall or may make in regard of the premises; and the court of the said county of Bertie is hereby authorized and required to fill up, from time to time, by new appointments and vacancies which may happen among the commissioners, by death or resignation; and upon complaint of the chief or headman of the nation, and the rest of the Indians, in court or meeting properly assembled, against any one of the commissioners for misbehavior, may inquire into the conduct of the person or persons complained against, remove him or them if necessary, and appoint another or others in his or their stead.

SEC. 7. And be it further enacted, That the lands leased by the said Tuscarora Indians to Robert Jones, jr. Wm. Williams, and Thomas Pugh, and to other persons, shall revert to, and become the property of the State, at the expiration of the terms in the several leases mentioned, if the said nation be then extinct: and the lands now belonging to, and possessed by, the said Tuscaroras, shall revert to, and become the property of the State, whenever the said nation shall become extinct, or shall entirely abandon or remove themselves off the said lands, and every part thereof: Provided, That no person shall have any preference of entry to any of the said lands by virtue of any lease or occupancy whatsoever since December, one thousand seven hundred and seventy-six, whenever the General Assembly shall declare the said lands to be vacant.

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[1783.]

An act for opening the Land Office for the redemption of specie and other certificates, and discharging the arrears due to the Army.

SEC. 3. And be it further enacted, That the Western boundary be enlarged, and established by a line, beginning on the line which divides this State from that of Virginia, at a point due North of the mouth of Cloud's Creek, running thence West to the Mississippi; thence down the Mississippi to the thirty-fifth degree of North latitude; thence due East until it strikes the Apalachian mountains: thence with the Apalachian mountains to the ridge that divides the waters of French-broad River and the waters of Nollichuckie River, and with that ridge until it strikes the line described in the fifth section of an act, entitled "An act to amend an act for establishing offices for receiving entries of claims for lands in the several counties within this State, for ascertaining the method of obtaining titles to the same, and for other purposes;" and with that line, and those several water courses, to the beginning.

SEC. 5. And be it further enacted, That the Cherokee Indians shall have and enjoy all that tract of land bounded as follows, to wit: Beginning on the Tennessee, where the Southern boundary of this State intersects the same, nearest to the Chickamawga Towns; thence up the middle of the Tennessee and Holstein to the middle of French-broad; thence up the middle of French-broad River (which lines are not to include any island or islands in the said river) to the mouth of Big-Pidgeon River; thence up the same to the head thereof, thence along the dividing ridge between the waters of Pidgeon River and Tuckasejah River to the Southern boundary of the State; and the lands contained within the aforesaid bounds shall be, and are hereby, reserved unto the said Cherokee Indians and their nation for ever, anything herein to the contrary notwithstanding.

SEC. 6. And be it further enacted, That no person shall enter and survey any lands within the bounds set apart for the said Cherokee Indians, under the penalty of fifty pounds specie for every such entry so made, to be recovered in any court of law in this State, by, and to the use of, any person who will sue for the same; and all such entries and grants thereupon, if any should be made, shall be utterly void.

SEC. 7. And be it further enacted, That no person, for any consideration whatever, shall purchase or buy, or take any gift or lease of any tract of land within the said bounds of any Indian or Indians; but all such bargains, sales, gifts, and leases, shall be, and are hereby, declared to be null and void; and the person so purchasing, buying, leasing, or taking any gift of any land of any Indian or Indians as aforesaid, shall moreover forfeit the sum of one hundred pounds specie, for every hundred acres so purchased, bought, leased, or taken, as aforesaid; one half to the use of the State, and the other half to him that will sue for the same, to be recovered in the manner aforesaid.

SEC. 8. And whereas the said Indians may receive injuries from people hunting, ranging, or driving stocks of horses, cattle, or hogs, on the lands hereby allotted them: For remedy whereof, Be it enacted by the authority aforesaid, That it shall not be lawful for any person or persons whatsoever to hunt or range on the said lands, or to drive stocks of cattle, horses, or hogs thereon, on pain of forfeiting the sum of fifty pounds specie for every such offence, together with such stock or stocks of horses, cattle, or hogs, so

driven; to be recovered by any person who shall sue for the same in the manner aforesaid.

SEC. 9. And be it further enacted, That it shall and may be lawful for any person who now is, or hereafter shall become, a citizen of this State, according to the constitution thereof, to enter with the Entry Taker, to be appointed by joint ballot of both Houses of this General Assembly, to receive entries for claims of land, (all lands in this act reserved for the Indians excepted) a claim for any lands, provided such claim does not exceed five thousand acres,

[1783.]

An act for appointing an agent, and holding a treaty with the Cherokee Indians, and for other purposes.

SEC. 1. Whereas, holding treaties, and appointing one or more agents to keep up a continual friendly correspondence with the said Indians, may prevent future wars, and save expense of blood and treasure:

SEC. 2. Be it therefore enacted by the General Assembly of the State of North Carolina, and it is hereby enacted by the authority of the same, That His Excellency the Governor, as soon as may be, shall hold, or by such persons as he shall commissionate for that purpose, cause to be held a treaty with the Chickamagaw and Over-hill Cherokees, and also with the Cherokees of the middle and valley settlements, at the Long Island, on Holstein river; and his Excellency the Governor is hereby empowered to cause the musket powder, belonging to this State, or so much thereof as he shall think necessary, not exceeding one thousand weight, to be removed to the frontiers convenient to the place where the said treaty shall be held, and to give the said powder, or cause the same to be given, in presents to the said Indians; and his Excellency the Governor is hereby empowered to issue warrants on the Treasury for any sum not exceeding two thousand five hundred pounds specie, and cause the same to be laid out in the purchase of goods suitable for the said Indians, and the same goods to give, or cause to be given, in consideration of the lands by the said Indians to be ceded to the State; and also, to issue warrants on the Treasury for the sum of one thousand pounds specie, to defray the expences of removing the said powder and goods, and the purchase of necessary provisions for the support of said Indians attending the treaty, and other expences thereof; and a full and accurate account of all expenditures, articles, stipulations, cessions, agreements, and proceedings of the said treaty, wherein this State is or may be interested, shall be laid before the next General Assembly.

SEC. 3. And be it further enacted by the authority aforesaid, That Joseph Martin be, and he is hereby, appointed agent in behalf of this State, for the Chickamagaw and Over-hill Cherokees, and for the Cherokees of the Middle Settlements and. Valley towns; and the said agent shall visit the Indians under his agency, in their own country, once in six months; shall deliver to them messages from the Governor, receive their talks, record them in a journal; record in like manner such public talks as he without order may deliver them, and send copies of both to the Governor.

SEC. 4. And in order that all the dealings and intercourses with the said Indians may be carried on in the most friendly and upright manner, and every fraud and imposition as far as possible prevented, Be it therefore enacted by the authority aforesaid, That no person whatsoever shall deal or traffic with the said Indians, within the limits of this State, without license

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