Des Moines courier. ([Ottumwa] Iowa) 1848-1854, 1851-10-10
j So @.es4' .saasf OTTUMWA, IOWA, OCTOBER 10, 1851

| Lands 10 whom the bill was referred,
and who reported it back with the letter
of the Commissioner of the General
Land Office. With this explanation of
the bill, its limitation 10 the lands. on each
side of the Des Moines River in strip
Of five miles wide, sfrom lis mouth 10
",he Raccoon Fork and the amount
"proposed to be granted" To own. "esti-
''mated at 26l,00O acres"--the Con-
gress of the United States passed the
bill. But now it is contended that the
grant TO Iowa extends from the mouth
of the River Des Moines above the Rae.
coon Fork. and includes its head waters,
making an addition, estimated at the
General Land Office of nine hundred
thousand acres, over aud above the guam
lity of two hundred and sixty-one thou
sand acres, proposed TO be granted. to-
geiher, grant Of one million one hun
dred and sixty-one thousand acres
The exposition of this act. so given
during the progress of the bill, was sub
Isequently given by the constituted au.
thorities of the Executive departments
respectively, of the United States aud of
Iowa, and carried into execution by a
selection of the alternate sections from
the mouth Of the river to the Raccoon
Fork, in strip Of five miles on each
side.
On the l7th of October, 1916, the
Commissioner of the General Land OF
| flee of the United States wrote to the
Governor OF Iowa. giving him copy OF
the grant to Iowa by the act OF the S:b
of August, $40, giving the diagram of
the grant as confined to the siriPof five
miles on each side of The river from the
moutheo the Raccoon Fork, giving also
a n ap Of the townships and sections and
unappropriaied lands within the said
grant TO Iowa, desiring the Governor to
make the selections of the alternate Sec
ilons, and to give notice TO the Land Of
ficers Of the United States.
La that letter the Commissioner Of the
General Land Office of the United States
said to Governor Clark, ..under this
sgrant the State is entitled 10 the vacan,
Glands in alternate sections within lve
"miles on each side of the Des Moines
River. from Sullivan's line the northern
.'bounGary Of Missouri, 10 the Raccoon
Fork of the Des Moines River
The Commissioner of the General
Land Office therein advised the Governor
10 select for Iowa the sections numbered
1, 3, 5, de-. odd numbers, as most ad-
vantageous, because if selected by even
numbers, 2, a, 6, &C., the State wonld
be deprived of the 18th section in each
Township, which is by law reserved for
schools. He also enclosed TO the Gov
ernor "a diagram of this grant, ITO Iowa.
1.-The boundary being colored pink, the
.'alternate sections blue, and the school
''land brown; also list showing the a.
"reas Of all the sections or parts of sec
.'tions within this grant, those having
''odd numbers in one column and the
seven numbers in ano,hcr;" with re
quest that when he had determined the
selection, to advise the Land Officers at
Fairfield and Iowa City, "who haye. been
constructed to withhold from sale. or en-
",ry of any kind, all the vacant and un-
appropriated lands in the sections you
"may select; please advise this office, re-
"turn the list and diagram, and list OF
I"the vacant lands in the sections selected
'.will be Immediately prepared. submit.
.ted to the Secretary of the Treasury
"for his approval as required by law, and
"when approved will be certified to
l"you." document e., No. 3, October
n, ls46.
According to this construction of the
grant TO Iowa and diagram Of the bonn
Diary and sections. the constituted author
tiles Of Iowa made their selections on
the l7th Of December, lS46, which
were reported to the Governor. and at
terwards to the Land Officers at Fairfield
and Iowa City. and TIE General Land
Office, according to the diagram furnish
ed by the General Land Office. Limiting
the grant to the Raccoon Fork, and that
diagram was returned by the constituted
authorities of Iowa to the General Land
Office, without any objection TO the con-
struction SO given TO the grant, but with
selection made according to that dia.
gram. (See Documents, Reports OF
Commissioners of Iowa of Ia Deeem.
Der. l846--l4--l97--(a) ID. No. 4, l..
! No. s.
/ la consequence Of this mutual under
standing OF the limits Of this grant be-
tween the constituted authorities of the
Uniled States anG those Of Iowa, and
the execution thereof by the selections
made and signitied by the State OF Iowa
the lands below the Raccoon Fork were
advertised for sale by the Presidents
Proclamation of 10Th of June, lS4S.-
No. ID.
From the report of the bill by ,ht
Committee in May, 1916. TO 9Th Janua
ry, lS49, the meaning Of this law wa.
understood by the Congress Of the Uni
led States. and by the Executive of th'
State Of Iowa, as being only for abou
Two hundred and sixty-one thousand a
crcs, in alternate sections. in a strip o
five miles on both sides Of the De-
Moines River from its mouth TO th'
Raccoon Fork. it was so carried into ex
ecution between the grantors and th'
Il urantaeS