Republican vindicator. [volume] (Staunton, Va.) 1849-1857, 1854-07-31
Synopsis Of Hunters Bill.

minimum price OF the public lands OF the t
United States shall be reduced after the d
st Of July, 1855, ADD sold. according to +
be following acalel, EH hmds which .
hall have been offered Il ,fnbties saie a6d b
egaih uDssld. Eve iyears, ODE dollar bef Is
Gre, for lands which shall have been oi. II
cred Ut public salt and ,remain' unsold ten Il
'eais, seventy five cents an acre; for lands /
which shall been offered at public sale q
md remain unsold fifteen years City cents I
IN acre; for lands which have been offer.
d at public sale and renain unsold TWEEN
y years, twenty-five cents an acree; and j.
Or lands which shall have been offered at ,
public sale and remain unsold thirty years,
welve and half cents all acre provided +,
hat the graduating process, from fifty cents
70 twenty-five cents an acre, shall not take
place until the lands in the fifty.cent class
shall have been exposed TO sale for Pc
Rod Of at least two years, At the price of
Fifty cents per acre, after which the price
81 the said lands be reduced to twenty
Eve cents per acre. 3
The second section provides fiaat when
ever State shall desire to require a pre-.
emPsion right to all the lands, or TO all tl.Ie
lands Of any certa;;, class and price witt.
In its borders, for other purpo,es II an :.
railroad o. canal, and signifies the ..nsa -
the PRESIDENT Of the United St..,.. hv IN
act Of its Legislature, they e..osH be Grant.
ed on the following tins: Thst said
State may fix the pric..e Of said lands above
that prescribed il. the f;rst section Of th,.
act, reserving the excess to ITSELF p.ov;.
oeo .nat .sle title shall not pass to me Dur.
c g until he has paid the rrice fixed ID
!, .ne said first section TO tie United States,
and that she lands shall be subject 10 the
same legal subdivisions in the sale and
survey % are now provided BY law and
provided further, that any State which
snal. sccept the provision Of this act, and
shall pre-empt any lands under il, shall
Z take them in full Of the FIVE per cent fund
thereafter to become due from the proceeds
Of said lands. But any State accepting the
provisions Of this and the preceding Sec
ton shall take the lands at the price fixed
for each particular class, snd no lands
shall be sold by them for twenty-five cents
an acre until they shall have been previ-
ously subj ect to entry through period Of
two years at the price Of fifty cents per
acre, TO be paid to the United States.
i The third section provides that when
ever State shall charter q railroad or
canal to run through the lands Of the
United States, and such State shall accept
the benefit Of the provisions hereinafter
prescribed by IN act to be passed at gem
srsl session Of its Legislature, upon due
notice being given Of the fact to the Secre-
tary Of the Interior, it shall be his duty
to set apart, Of the pubic lands, seven
thousand six hundred and eighty acres
per mile Of lailroad or canal, within twelve
miles on each side, and as near the route
Of such railroad or canal Is possible, and
the same shall be Withdrawn from sale OF
entry by public advertisement of the Sec
rotary Of the Interior, except in the man.
ner and form hereinafter prescribed The
price Of these lands shall be one dollar per
acre for those which have not vet been
offered at public sale, or for those which
have been subject to private entry less
than, five years; seventy-ive cents for
those which have been 30 subject to entry
more than five years and less than ten
years; fifty cents for those which have
been so subject to entry more than ten
years and less than twenty years. and
twenty cents per acre for those which
have been so subject to entry more than
tn enty years.
/ The fourth section provides that State
through which such railroad or canal passs-
es. and in which the said lands. lie, shall
desire to do so, it may select, as pre-empt-
or, all the lands so reserved at the mini
mum prices designated in the third Sec
ton Of this act but the State must take
up and pay IN cash for said land within
ten years from the time when set apart
by tht Secretary Of the Interior, or other
wise its right to such Of them a. remain
unsold shall be forfeited. But before the
respiration Of this period the State may
sell the lands thus reserved to individuals
or corporations, provided that no title
shall vest in the purchaser until he pays
to the receiver Of the proper land Office Of
the United States, for the use of the United
States. the price herein fixed as the price
per acre for which the lands shall be
sold.
+ The fifth section provides that, in the
event Of difference between the Post
mester General aud the railroad company
as to the compensation for carrying the
mails, the matter shall be settled by mu-
tual agreement between the Postmaster
General and the Governor of the State in
which such railroad lies.
The sixth section provides that the lands
purchased by any State, under the provi.
sions Of the third section of this act. shall
be applied BY said State for the constfuc-
ton Of the railroad or canal for which
they were reserved; and that no lands
shall be included within the operation Of
this act to which the Indian title has not
been extiugulshed.
The seventh section provides that ihi.
act shall in no way apply to town or vii
lage property, either in.lots OF out..ots,
nor BE- so construed a. to interfere with
any presumption claim, or to lands re.
served for schools, salines, or reserved
section on railroad grants, or other pur-
poses. under any existing laws of the
United Sta:es nor to any Of the mineral
lands Of the United States.
! The eighth section provides that any
tree white person, who il the head Of
family, Or who has arrived at the age Of
twenty.one wears, and is capable Of hold
. Al 1s,.,c cf A.. 2.