Washington telegraph., 1852-12-08

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authority be given to the Governor to apply
to the Surveyor General to continue the work
of selecting and reporting the lands to the
commissioner of the General Land Office to
completion, without further Intervention of
selecting agents. After the Secretary of
the Interior shall have approved the unsold
lands so reported, agents can then be ap-
pointed to select additional lands embraced
by the grant. 1t is evident that much con-
fusion and difficulty may arise from selling
swamp lands and granting certificates Of
purchase or location before the confirmation
of the lands to the State Should any lands
disposed Of not be patented to the State,
we know that the Governor, with propriety,
could not execute deeds for them Antici-
patingthat such cases may arise, suggest
that provisions be made, for issuing land
scrip to the locators of such lands, as shall
not be patterned. With regard to conflicting
claims If individuals to swamp lands, I re
commend that provisions be made by law,
Cor settling them upon principles of equity
and justice, in all cases not beyond legisla-
tive conrol. need not urge upon you to
protect tue actual settler from those, who,
for gain would rob him of his home and Ia
bor If improved lands should be located
or purchased by any person, I recommend
before obtaining possession thereof, such
person be required to pay to the owner, dou-
BILE the value Of his improvement, and that
the owner OF the improvement have lien
upon the land until payment.
IND "a OF t!,, 1ocf r>f
the Legislature. the swamp land Commits
sioners adopted an ordinance, declaring
"That all that portion of the swamp lands
donated to the State of Arkansas, by an act
Of Congress, approved 2Sth day Of Septem-
ber, 1850, lying and being within six miles
of any navigable stream in this State, shall
be and they are hereby classed in the first
class, and the price fixed at Is cents per
acre. and, "That all swamp lands lying
and being over six miles from any navigable
stream in this State: and all lands between
the rivers and levees, are hereby classed in
the second class, and the price thereof fix
ed at fifty cents per acre, > and that the fol-
lowing named streams, RUNNING through
and bordering upon this State, are hereby
declared navigable streams, as coming with
in the purview of this order, viz Missis-
sipp, St. Francis, White, Arkansas, Bar
tholomew, Saline. Ouacbita, Little River,
Little Missouri, Petit Jean, Cache, Spring
Red and Black Rivers The Commission
ers also adopted an ordinance declaring their
construction of section Ii of the act of the
Legislature, relative to swamp lands approx
ed the 9th of January, 1851, referring, to
pre-emptions.
1 call your attention to these ordinances,
as embracing subjects, which seem to me,
to be of sufficient, importance to demand
that all titles to lands derived from the State.
should be governed and guarded directly by
her laws, without the Intervention of any
other authority.
l recommend that the swamp and over
flowed lands be applied only to the objects
for which they were granted, until we shall
have ascertained that they will not all be
required to accomplish those objects, as far
as practicable, for We do not yet know the
quantity of land embraced by the grant, nor
can we estimate, with any degree of certain
ty. the whole value of the lands or the en-
tire cost of reclaiming them.
With regard to the Saline lands. I recon-
mend that a law be past requiring the State
Land Agent to select and reserve, in legal
subdivisions, as nearly as practicable, $40
acres thereof, for and including each Salt
spring. as nearly as may be, in the centre,
and that minimum price, of not less than
FIVE dollars per acre be placed upon each
of such reservations, and that he be author
lied to sell no part of any such reservation,
without selling the whole tract of $40 acres,
including the Salt spring. ] recommend
that, after the reservations suggested shall
have been made, presumption ghts he al
lowed to such actual settlers as may own i'm
provements upon any of the Saline lands
but those reserved, so as to authorize each
pre-emptor to purchase, in legal subdivisions,
at such price as-shall be fixed by law, $50
acres, or less if he prefer, to include his i'm
provement; that the State Land Agent be
authorized to sell all the residue of such
Saline lands; and that the proceeds thereof
be appropriated towards establishing in diff
ferent sections of the State, seminaries of
learning, where none are established and
in contributions to such as have been estab-
lished by association and individuals, includ-
ing one at the capitol Of the State, and such
others as you may consider best adapted to
the convenience and interest Of the people
in the different sections of the State. In
cases in which such institutions are incorpo-
rated and authorized to receive and sell real
estate. it would perhaps be well to grant to
each, the lands, in such quantities as shall
be deemed equal to the contribution intend
ed to be made. l would recommend that
liberal proportion be granted to the insti-
tuition to be established at the seat of gov
ernment. The conditions of such grants
should be prescribed by law, so that the in