The republic., 1851-03-19

/ pACee on tue rlver-'
In answer to this letter the marshal and dstrict
| attorney were told that 'sinstead Of commencing
ndiscriminate prosecutions against all concerned
| IN such dcprcdations, some three or four Of the
most prominent cases, where the proofs are clear,
| should be selected for punishment;" and "if the
owners OF the mills prompted Others 10 steal tim
Der, or purchased il, knowing it to come from the
public lands, they should be first made examples
| and subjected to prosecution" II further
said SIT may be worthy of your attention TO ascer-
tain from time to time the condition of the mill
yards, and when you find them stocked with tim
Der from the public lands, or lumber sawed from
| such timber, to seize it by legal process"
| From the foregoing statement, i doubt not that
you will concur with me, that the instructions is
sued called for by just regard to the public
interest, that it inculcated cautious discrimina-
ton, and was dictated by spirit Of vindctive-
| ness The object was moro to deter the commits
sion OF trespasses anticipated than to punish those
| who had already committed them.
| am not aware of any disposition existing in any
branch of the Government to harass by suits set
tiers on the public lands, surveyed unsurveyed,
who have made locations in good faith, and have
used the public timber in making improvements ON
them, or in their immediate vicinage Suchis con-
ceved to be the spirit of tho circular of May 80,
| 1850, and of all the instructions issued from this
the views of this office be ascertaned from let
under date of December 49, $780, addressed to the
| district attorney of Wisconsin, copy Of which is
also enclosed. The pre-emption laws ofCongress ap
ply only to surveyed lands settler such lands
who intends to avail himself of the benefit of these
laws has an undoubted right, upon making and FL
ing with the register the statement required, for
| the period of twelve months from the time of his
settlement, to use whatever timber he may deem
necessary to improve his location No such settler
Ipresume, has been prosecuted trespasser pre-
emption right is legal tangible right of no little
value to its (generally) poor owner The Supreme
Court of the United States, at its last term speaks
of it in this language: "The claim of pre- emp
Lion Is not that shadowy right which, by some,
it is considered to be- Until sanctioned by law,
. it has existence substantive right But
when covered by the law, it becomes legal right
subject to be defeated only by failure to perform
the conditions annexed TO it. II ia founded in an
enlightened public policy, rendered necessary by
the enterprise of our citizens. The adventurous
pioneer, who is found in advance of our settle
ments, encounters many hardships, and not un-
frequently dangers from savage incursons He |
is generally poor, and it is fit that his enterprise
should be rewarded by the privilege of purchas |
ing the favorito spot selected by him, not exceed
ing hundred and sixty acres. That this is the
national feeling, is shown by the course of Con.
= gress for many years"
In the exercise of this right the settler cannot
and should not be disturbed Strictly speaking |
every entry on unsurveyed lands is q trespass. |
But when it is considered that these lands will
be surveyed, and that thereupon the pre- emption
law would apply to them, no one would advise |
prosecutions against bona fde settlers on these |
lands. What mean by settler in good faith il |
who locates on lot Of land with the purpose Of
- i
entering it when it is thrown into market. pre-
sumo, also, that such settler has been sued as
trespasser. So, too. of the mill-owner, who con-
fines his numbering operations to land on which he
has actually settled in good faith, though he might
have sold some lumber to his immediate neighbors
for the purpose Of improving their locations, would
hardly be annoyed by lawsuits commenced under |
instructions from this office. Il have referred to
of this sort in my ettor to tho district attor
ney last referred toy But when the mill owner |
takes upon himself the execution of roaming |
commission, and depredates, indiscriminatcly, on |
all lands within his reach, he then ceases to bo |
bona dc settler, and s not entitled to the indul-
gence allowable to such settlers. The right of the |
Government to take peaeeabe possession of the tim
Der taken from its lands by trespassers is unques-
tionablc; any change of its form, not destroying
its identity, or not converting it into FIXTURE |
would not deprive it of this right. The conversion
of trees into logs, logs into boards or shingles,
would vest no title to the logs, boards shingles,
in the trespasser his vendee. Whether this right
should be exercised in any given case would de-
pend on its own peculiar circumstances
Your verbal suggestion Of this morning in re- |
gard to friendly settlement of the suits already
instituted, is entitled to, and will receive. all
proper attention. No government should re-
quire from its citizens any thing unreasona.
ble-any thing which looks like injustice or op- |
preston. 1t should commend itself to their af- |
fections by acts of kindness and benefcence |
So far as warning and example are concerned, I |
presume that the prosecutions already commenced |
have served their purpose. Until the decision of
the Supreme Court in the case of Briggs to which
have referred, it seemed to be the general opin-
ion of the settlers on the public lands that they
were doing no great wrong in taking timber there
from. Many, no doubt, honestly believe that by |
the erection of their mills, and furnishing lum-
ber to the neighboring settlements, they were
doing good service, by increasng the settlement |
of the country AS have elsewhere remarked, |
it matters not to the Government whether or not |
the land be bought before after the timber |
il taken from it; all it fairly require is,
that the land be paid for at the usual prico. |
The propriety of prosecuting person who has
already entered and paid for section OF land, not
withstanding he may have taken timber from il |
previous to the entry, would receive sanction |
from any quarter. These suits, as before remark
ed, have been commenced in no vindictive spirit !
1t must be recollected, however, that tn, Govern
ment has rights as we'll as the citizens When the
rights Of the former have been unconsciously vo-
lated by the latter, and he manifests disposition
to place himself in the right, both humanity and
sound policy would direct that further legal pro-
coedings should cease.
Any manifestation of this disposition made by |
the persons prosecuted will doubt be met by the
Government in fair and liberal spirit
Thesuggcstion that the persons implicated should
confess judgment in reasonable amount, under
stipulation that the lands on which tres
passes have been committed are in condition to
be entered, they shall be by them entered, and
thercupon. on payment of the costs and expenses