GENERAL COUNCIL OF THE CHEROKEE NATION.

NATIONAL COMMITTEE.

Tuesday Oct 28.

The petition of Reuben Thornton is regard to his Road and Ferry was again taken up. The following Resolution was than adopted, and sent down for concurrence:

Resolved by the Committee and Council in General Council convened, That from and after the passage of this Resolution it shall be unlawful for any citizen of citizens of the Cherokee Nation to cut or open any road or roads from any public road in this Nation, in any direction whatever, or repair any road or roads that have been put down by the authority of the Nation, or to open any road, or establish on their own account, or in conjunction with any white person, any ferry or ferries on any water courses bounding on this Nation or within the limits thereof, without first obtaining a permit from the General Council on the terms of the law passed Oct. 1819 on the subject of roads. And that all roads and ferries which are now in operation within this Nation as aforesaid, and which have been opened and established without a permit from the Genl. Council since the passage of the aforesaid law of 1819, are hereby declared to be unlawful, and the same shall be forthwith stopped by the sheriff of the District in which such roads or ferries may be located, or by the Marshal of the Nation, giving notice to the parties using said roads or ferries, or at whose instance the same may have been cut out or established, that the same are put down, and required to be stopped by them, by virtue of, and in obedience to the provisions of this Resolution. And any person or persons continuing to keep open or use such roads or ferries thereafter, shall be considered as if the same had been cut out or established after the passage of this Resolution; and shall be subject to such penalty as shall hereinafter be fixed.

Sec. 2 Be it further Resolved, That it shall be the duty of the several sheriffs of the circuits courts of this Nation, and the Marshal of the Nation, upon information being lodged with them, or upon any violation of the provisions of this Resolution coming to their knowledge, forthwith to arrest such violators, and carry them before one of the Circuit Judges or Justices of Peace, who shall bind them over to appear at the next circuit court for the district in which the offence was committed in a bond with such security at the said Judge or Justice shall deem sufficient to compel the said violators to appear at the court aforesaid, ' stand trial. And in the event of any person or persons so arrested refusing to give good and sufficient security for his or their appearance at court as aforesaid, then it shall be the duty of the Judge or Magistrate, before whom such person or persons may be brought, to inflict upon them the penalty hereinafter specified.

Sec. 3 Be it further Resolved, That any person or persons that shall violate any of the provisions of this resolution, shall, for every such offence, of which he is convicted pay a fine of five hundred dollars, one half to go to the arresting officer, and the other half to be paid into the National Treasury; which said fine shall be collected by any qualified officer of the Nation by seizing any property belonging to such person or persons, as in case of other fines imposed by the laws of this Nation.

Sec. 4. And be it further Resolved, that this Resolution shall be considered as an amendment to the Resolution of 30th October 1819, on the subject of roads: and that the following clause in said Resolution, 'On any such cases as may be brought before them for trial,' be, and the same is hereby repealed.

The Judiciary Bill was again taken up, and after further progress, a Committee was appointed, consisting of Messrs. Daniel, Gunter and Ward, to draft a resolution, organizing and defining the duties of the inferior Courts of the several Districts.

The Resolution of the Council, to appoint Committees to visit the several Mission Schools in the Nation and report, was read and laid on the table.

Jos. Vann (of Hightower D.) John Baldridge and John Timpson were appointed a Committee to take into consideration so much of the Chiefs' Message as relates to the passage of a law regulating the manner of conducting elections in the several Districts, and to report thereon.

A petition was presented from John C. Bird, who was sentenced by the Supreme Court to receive one hundred lashes on the bare back for the crime of horse-stealing, praying for the remission of a part if not the whole of the punishment. The house resolved that the prayer of the petitioner ought not to be granted.

Wednesday 29th.

Reuben Thornton appeared and executed a bond with security for the payment of the loan authorized to be made to him by a Resolution passed the present session.

The following resolution was passed, and sent down for concurrence;

Resolved by the Committee and Council in General Council convened:

That the Resolution passed 24th October 1827, prolonging the suspension of the poll tax law, be, and the same is hereby prolonged for the term of one year: and the law imposing a tax on citizen merchants is also hereby suspended for the above mentioned term.

The Principal Chief returned the resolution regulating the manner of issuing permits 'c. stating his rejection of the bill in its present form, and his inability, on account of the death of an infant child this morning, to state his objections immediately. Laid on the table till the Principal Chief should state his objections.

The Resolution of the Council respecting the appointment of Committees to visit the Mission Schools in the nation was taken up and several amendments proposed and discussed.

Thursday 30th.

The subject of visiting School Committees was resumed, and the following resolution passed and sent to the Council for concurrence, in lieu of that submitted to the Committee by that body:

Resolved by the Committee and Council in General Council convened:

That there shall be appointed by the Principal Chief of the Cherokee Nation two committees of two members each, one on each Judicial Circuit, whose duty it shall be to visit the different Schools in the Nation within the respective districts of their Circuits, at the public examinations of said Schools, once a year, and to report to General Council, annually the number of scholars, progress of education 'c.

Be it further Resolved, That they shall be paid one dollar per day, while in actual service, out of the National Treasury not otherwise appropriated.

The Committee to whom was referred so much of the Chiefs Message, as related to the passage of a law regulating the mode of elections made report. After some discussion and progress the bill was laid on the table.

Jos. Vann (C.) moved that it was expedient to repeal the law passed 28th Oct. 1828, requiring the payment of cash for a trade debt in case of delay in making payment after the demand is made. After discussion the house agreed to repeal. Ayes Baldridge, Foreman, McDaniel, Griffin, Saunders, Timpson, Taylor, J. Vann (C.) D. Vann, J. Vann (H.) Ward, 11. Nays Bolin, Daniel, Downing, Gunter, 4.

Friday 31st.

A Resolution was moved for the enactment of a law, to be an amendment of the law passed 12th November 1825, in lieu of amendment made 28th Oct. 1826, repealed. After some discussion the Resolution was laid on the table.

The objections of the Principal Chief to the Resolution regulating the issuing of permits, 'c. were presented in writing. The Resolution with the objections was read and laid on the table to be read again on Monday next.

The Resolution respecting contracts made payable in property was resumed, further discussed, and made the order of tomorrow.