The miners' express. (Dubuque, Iowa) 1849-1854, 1850-02-06
CITY AFFAIRS.
To the Hon. Mayor and Aldermen of the
City OF Dubuque.

your City, and the disposition of the funds of
the same, would ask leave to make the follow
ing report:
And in the first place would call your atten
ton to an act Of Congress, approved July End,
$50, by which it was made the duty Of the Sur
veyor General of public lands; to have the fol-
l lowing towns surveyed, to wit: Fort Madison.
Burlington, Bellevicw, Dubuque, Peru, and Mi
neral Point, and laid off into lots, streets, ayen-
ues, &c &c. The same act appropriated the
sum of So, 900 to defray the expenses of survey
ing the lands covering the above named towns;
and further provides, that not more than one sec
ton (64O acres) of land, shall be laid off in eth
cr; and that the lots in each of those towns shall
be classed into three classes the first not to be
sold for less sum than forty dollars; the second
for not less than twenty dollars; and the third
for not less than ten dollars per acre. You will
perceive that each acre contains eirht lots; con-
scQucntly the first class lots were sold for five
dollars each, and the second and third in accord
ancc with their classification as prescribed bv
law
And in addition to the act Of July 3D. 1886
the Congress Of the United States passed an act
anendatory to the same, which was approved
March Sd, 1887, by which it was made the duty
Of the President of the United States to ap,oint
Commissioners, thrcc in numbcr) whose duty
it was to hear all evidence in reference to all
claims under the act of July End, 1886, to which
the act of March Sd, 1889 is alncndatorv: this
act further provides, that the Commissioners so
appointed, shall receive the sum Of six dollars
per day each, for every day they are necessarily
employed, to be paid by the Receivers of the
proper Land Districts. After the Commits
sioners have performed their duty, the same
act makes it the duty of the Receiver and Re-
gister to expose, or in other words to sell, the
lots in the above named towns, according to
classification, prescribed in the act Of July 2d,
1886 And the amcndatory act further provides,
that the Receivers Of public money shn1l, after
having settled with the Commissioners, &c..
pay over the residue, if any in their hands aris
ing from the sale Of lots to the proper author-
ties of each town.
We would here state for the information of
your Hon. body, the amount received by all of
the Receivers, -four in numbcr,) and the differ
ent amounts received by each, and the disposi-
ton made Of the same; and at the same time ask
leave to make few explanatory remarks upon
each. We will, in the first place, state the whole
amount received and by whom it was received
Mr.. Mcknight received for lois sold in the
City of Dubuque, !s5,573 2G.
DIR. S. Langworthy received 81 300 90.
Col George McHenry received 1884 70.
Mai. M. Mobley received nothing.
We will briefly (as brcvity is our object state
the disposition made of the same when paid and
how paid which will more fully appear from a
statement herewith annexed. Mr. Mcknight
being the first Receiver, our remarks will first
apply to him.
In the first place, we find that he has received
for lots sold in your City, the sum as above sta
ted, to wit: $6,57:} 2G, in cash, and as we have
before stated; the Congress of the Z. States ap-
propriated the sum Of $4,000 for surveying the
above towns.
Your committee would here state, that at the
time the appropriation as above referred to, was
made, that the appropriation for surveying pur-
poses came directly into the hands of the Sur.
veyor General, for him to distribute the same tc
his Deputies, which we cannot but infer was the
case in this instance, in case of other public
lands. 1t is true that Mr.. Mcknight in his list
of vouchers, (as will hereafter appear) or in his
account, show that he has paid back to the gov
ernment the sum of s 4O4, as will appear by
the statement annexed, having been an ad-
vance made to Commissioners. We cannot, af.
ter a careful examination of the acts of Congress
from S36 to the present time, find any law au-
thorizng the advance of any amount to Com
mssoncrs as charged by Mr.. McKnight but by
the act of July I'd, 1886, there was appropriated
the sum $4,000, which went into the hands ofthe
then Surveyor General, expressly to be applied
to the payment of surveying the above-named
, towns, (six in number; nor can we find any law
authorizing or requiring any of the receivers to
refund any part of the three thousand dollars
that were appropriated before stated, express
" to dcfray the expense of surveying.
=, We will, for the present, admit the fact that
Mr. Mcknight did refund to the government the
: amount as above rtated We ask, is it not a We.
ry unequal proportion for Dubuque to be rcqui-
red to refund to the government the sum Of
r $14O4-almost one half of the whole amount ap-
propriatcd for surveying? When we take into
consideration that the law under which these
towns were surveyed, &c, confined each town
S strictly to section of land, (64O acres,) we
ask, is it probable that either one of the above
named towns would be, under the law, satisfied
with less than ono entire section. If such be
the case, how, we would ask, did it cost near
half of the entire appropriation for surveying
purposes?
Your Committee would here state, that from
the best information in their possession, that the
amount of money received by Mr.. McKnigh,
was prior to the years 1910 and 1S41, or perhaps
during these years. We also learn from the ci-
ty record, that he has been called upon by the
proper authorities of the City of Dubuque a
number of times since he sold lots to the amt
as above stated; and we further find from the
same source, that the first amount by him paid
to the City was in the latter part ofthe year 1914
This amount was in two payments to wit: $25C
and 5000 in cash. The next amount that we
find upon the record was in Feb 1S47. This
amount was paid in City liabilities, (or in scrip
amounting 10 - 200 of, llCluuiIlg iiltelcst III"
had accrued thereon to him, and the scrip at its
face. The above being all the payments to the
city, until the early part of the present month
: at this time a committee of your body made q
final settlement with him.
Your Committee would further state, that ac
cording to the amount herewith annexed, vii
show an Indebtedness of Mr. Mcknight in the
sum of S212 70. He has, since the rendition
q of the amount annexed, paid the above sum o
$212 70, with interest thereon for SIX years,
the rate Off per cent per an1ium. And in addl
e ton to the above amount, he has paid the sum O
one hundred and fifty dollars, with interest as a
. bove computed.
The next in order Of the receivers OF public
: moneys, is Doct Stephen Langwortiry, who, !
. appears, as above stated, from an investigation
!. by former committee, sold lots in this city t
u the amount Of &1 ,204 80, and paid out the SAM
IS in accordance with the law, which will more ful
t lly appear by statement herewith annexed; AM
!. in fact it leaves balance due him OF $3.50.
y The next in order is Col. Geo. Mcaery, who
e during the time that he held the Office Of he
cciver, sold lots, as above stated, to the smour