Arenas

I.

Heirship of Allotees of Indian Lands. The continuing tutelage which the Government exercises over Indians and their lands and the desire of the Congress to prevent their exploitation and spoliation have resulted in the granting of the right of access to judicial tribunals and administrative bodies for the determination of questions incident upon the rights to lands held under trust allotments made under various acts of the Congress.

Two statutory enactments are fundamental in this matter. The first is the Act of February 6, 1901. By this Act, persons in whole or in part of Indian blood or descent who (a) are “entitled to an allotment” under any Act of the Congress, or (b) who “claim to be so entitled” to such an allotment, or (c) who claim to “have been unlawfully denied or excluded from any allotment or any parcel of land”, to which they claim to be entitled, may institute an action in the District Courts of the United States.

Three groups of cases are covered by the statute: (a) those seeking to establish the right to an allotment , (b) those in which the Indians are seeking to protect their interest in land to which they are entitled under any congressional grant, -and to…