Southern shield., 1851-01-25
GENERAL LAND OFFICE, ,
 NOU. 2Ist, 1850. {

WOE. AlSC, IO0U.
 SIR: By the act of Congress entitled "An act to enable the State of Arkansas and other States, 10 reclaim the Swamp lands
 within their limits," approved September |2S, 1850, it is directed "That to enable the State of Arkansas, 10 construct the neces- |sary levees and drains to reclaim the swamp and overflowed lands therein, the whole of those swamp and overfowed lands made thereby unfit for cultivation, which shall
 remain unsold at the passage of this act shall be and the same are hereby granted to said State.''
 | lst. By the 4th section of this act, it is directed, that the provisions of it shall be
 extended to and their benefits be conferred upon each of the other States of the Union in which such swamp and overfowed lands may be situated.
 2d And "that in making out list and
 plats of the lands aforesaid, all legal sub,
 divisions, the greater part of which is "wet and unfit for cultivation, shall be included | in said list and plats; but when the greater part of a subdivision is not of that charac- | ter, the whole of it shall be excluded there | from"
 This act clearly and unequivocaly grants
 10 the several States, those lands which from being swampy or subject to overflow, are unfit for cultivation. In this class is in- cuded also all lands which, though dry part of the year, are subject to inundation at
 the planting, growing or harvesting season,
 so as to destroy the crop. and therefore
 are unfit for cultivation taking the average
 of the seasons, for a reasonable number of | years as the rule of determination.
 You will please make out a list of all the lands thus granted to the State, designating
 those which have been sold or otherwise l disposed of since the passage of the law
 and the price paid for them when purchased. The only reliable data in your possession from which these lists can be made out, are
 the field notes of the surveyors on file in your office; and if the authorities of the
 State are willing to adopt these as the basis
 of those lists, you will so regard them. If not, and those authorities furnish you sats- factory evidence, that any lands are of the
 character embraced by the grant, you will
 so report them. ... ... ..e.E The following general principles will govern you, in making up these lists, to wit: Where the field notes are the basis and the intersections of the lines of swamp or overflow with those of the public surveys alone are given, those instructions may be
 connected by straight lines, and all legal Subdivisions the greater part of which are shown by these lines to be within the swamp or overflow will be certified to the State;
 the balance will remain the property of the Government.
 Where the State authorities may con- lclude to have the surveys made to deter mine the boundaries of the swamp or Ioveraowed lands, those boundaries alone should ee surveyed, taking connections with the nearest section or township corners; or Where the swamp or overflowed lands are On the borders of a stream or lake, the lstream or lake could be meandered and or dinates surveyed at suitable intervals, from the borders of the stream or lake to the margin of the swamp or overfowed lands, and by connecting the ends of those ordin- Iates, next 10 that margin by straight lines, 1 the boundaries of the swamp or overfowed 1 lands can be ascertained with sufficient ac-
 curucy. In no case, however, should any such boundaries or ordinates be marked in
 the field as they may produce difficulty in determining the lines and corners of the public surveys hereafter, and thus lead to litigation The selections in all these cases