136 Minn. 239 | Minn. | 1917
This is an action to determine adverse claim to real estate in St. Louis county. The land, the title to which is in controversy, was patented by the United States to the heirs of Alexis La Framboise. Plaintiff claims that he is the son and heir of Alexis and therefore the owner of the land. At the time of his death, Alexis, who was a Sioux Indian of the half-blood, owned certain Sioux scrip which gave him a right to select and receive a patent for a given amount of government land. After his death, Ellen Cekiya, claiming to be his widow and sole heir, and the sole heir of their children, gave to one Burke a power of attorney to locate the scrip and sell the land when located and patented. The power to locate was exercised and the patent issued, as before stated. Burke then conveyed the land to defendant Day, who conveyed an undivided one-third to defendant Maher.
The issue is as to whether plaintiff is the son and heir of Alexis La Framboise. If he is, his claim of title to an undivided two-thirds of the land must be sustained. If he is not, the title of defendants is good.
The father of Alexis La Framboise was a full-blooded Canadian Frenchman, the mother a Sioux Indian of the full-blood. Alexis was born near Fort Ridgeley, Minnesota. He became, and was at the time of his marriage, sufficiently educated in the English language to converse and write therein, and for a time served in a clerical capacity in a general merchandise store. He associated with the Sisseton-Wahpeton and Santee bands of Sioux Indians some of the time, adopted some of their customs, ancT was carried on the rolls of the United States government as a mixed-blood of the Sioux tribe of Indians. The scrip, under a part of which the land in controversy was located near the place of his birth, was so-called Sioux half-breed scrip, and was issued by the government to Alexis as a mixed-blood of the Sioux tribe. In 1859 Alexis duly intermarried with one Quana, or Emma, a Sioux Indian maiden, and for a time they lived together as husband and wife. During this time two children were born to them, both of whom died in infancy. In 1863 the marriage relation between Alexis and Emma was duly terminated. Thereafter and during the year 1867 plaintiff was born to Emma, and is her son. He is not the son or heir of Alexis.
As conclusions of law the court determined that defendants are the owners in fee of the land in dispute, and that plaintiff has no right, title or interest therein, and ordered judgment accordingly. Plaintiff made a motion for a new trial, assigning as grounds that the decision was not justified by the evidence and was contrary to law, that there were errors in certain rulings on the trial, and newly discovered evidence. The motion was denied, judgment was entered on the decision, and this appeal taken from the judgment.
Was it error to refuse- to grant a new trial because of newly discovered evidence ?
Counsel for plaintiff seems to concede that the evidence to prove a divorce would have been competent and sufficient for the purpose if Alexis had been a full-blooded Indian, and perhaps if he had been adopted into the tribe. He contends that Alexis was a white man, looked and dressed like one, and was treated by the Indians as one. For these reasons plaintiff argues that the case is as it would be where a white man takes
The decisions as to the validity of Indian divorces are not wholly in accord. It is uniformly held that so long as Indians- live together under the tribal relation and tribal government they are not subject to the laws of the state, but only to the jurisdiction of Congress. They have uniformly been regarded by the government and by the courts as dependent governments subject to the will of Congress and under the laws of the United States. Under the laws of the United States they are recognized as capable of managing their own affairs, including their domestic relations, and those persons who were recognized by the Indian custom and law as married persons, must be treated so by the courts. Earl v. Godley, supra, and eases cited; Cyr v. Walker, 29 Okl. 281, 116 Pac. 931, 35 L.R.A.(N.S.) 795, and cases in note. This principle clearly applies to divorce. There is little doubt but that a divorce according to Indian custom is valid, where the acts by which it is alleged to have been effected take place while the parties continue to reside in Indian territory and where the marriage was contracted therein. Some of the cases go further than this, as does Cyr v. Walker, where a white man who had been adopted
We hold that the trial court correctly held that the marriage relation between Alexis and Quana was “duly terminated” in 1863, and that the finding that plaintiff was not the son of Alexis is sustained by the evidence.
Order affirmed.