Saint Paul weekly Minnesotian. [volume] (Saint Paul, Minn.) 1858-1859, 1858-07-24
Few Pages i'm the History Of the Min-
nesota and North West Railroad Conn

deceit, and fraud and humbug shall cease to
rule in Minnesota
When the tricks of the Indian trade
shall give place to an honest frank, manly
white mans method Of ruling white mcr.
When our public men shall no longer act
upon the principle that every white man has
his price, like every Indian, and when they
shall not only be yirtuous themselves but
credit the possibility of public virtue in 9TH
ers
When our legislatures will be no longer
bribed us was the Extra Session of 1897
-When the RICE, SHELLEY and MoccaSh
crowd OF adventurers generally shall no lon
ger have the power TO cheat tie people TO
their own undoing-no longer be able to OBJ
tain their sanction under false pretenceS and
swindling representations to measures oil queS-
tionable propriety
When .teo principles and t.cO measures
stall not be concealed under The mask Of only
one, and be presented for popular approba-
ton with an African concealed under every
other fair looking and seemingly harmless but
carefully worded paragraph, and which not
withStanding its fair face is intended by its
concoctors to conceal lie, a cheat and fraud
upon somebody
And as appropos to these remarks, who
amongst the old settlers of Minnesota does
not remember how EpMUND RICE and that
crowd, for the benefit of themselves and a
set of Wall Street spectators, engineered
through the Territorial legislature the charter
for Il company called the Minnesota and North
Western RGilroaa Company, to construct a
Railroad from the Iowa line by way of Saint
Paul to Lake Superior, terminating at its
western extremity in the vicinity of the pres
ent city of Superior.
How a clause was worked into said char
Ter by which Minnesota endowed said compa-
ny with and gave unto it exclusively oil the
lands that were or which might be granted by
Congress to aid the construction of railroads
in Minnesota F.!
How during the same winter, at Wash
ington city HENRY NJ. RICE. Mr.. LowBER,
the New York SPECTATOR and others were
busily engaged engineering through Congress
an act granting lands "to aid in the coEstruc-
ton Of railroad through Minnesota from
the Iowa line by way Of st. Paul to Lake
SUPERIOR
How Congress probably got an inkling
of the scheme by which this grant was posi-
lively to ensure to a certain band Of mecca
sin;tes and Spectators through its prospective
donation already by the Minnesota Legislature
to the Minnesota and North Western Rail
road Company.
How Congress sought to block this game,
and leave the disposition and management OF
the land grant TO a fu!are legislature.
How this did not suit the RIcEs nor
their New York allies, and how after the bill
had been got through the lower House Of
Congress, the act qcas altered in the course o.
is Transmission 10 the Senate-altered SO as
to allow the land grant to enure to the very
company which the RICrs and the New York
AllN SDCCuldlOiS COulrOllcu anu (WHICH
How so skillfully was the alteration eff.
fected by the change of the little word "or'
and the substitution of the little word sand
in the place of it, making n most material
and vital difference in the meaning and cpc
ration of the grant-that the act went through
the Senate, was signed by the President and
1oNt l,nf,l flo
was discovered
How. when day or two afterwards, the
forgery was detected, the utmost indignation
and excitement pervaded Congress, and-not
withstandlng the plea put in that the Terri
tory OF Minnesota was innocent of the fraud
and ought not to be made to suffer for the
Iascaty Of outsiders-thc Land Grant act
was nevertheless forthwith repealed acHh a
perfect rush, by three-fourths vote of both
branches of Congress!
- How before the repeating act went
through, the corporators Of the Minnesota
and North Western Railroad Company, un-
der the auspices Of RICE and LowBER hur
Iiedly met IN New York city,, on the 1st Of
July, the second day after tie President
signed the act, and duly organized' by
electinc their officers, &c.
- How that this organization " was held
by them and their friends to give their IN.
pany what are called "Cssted aighis" in the
lands, and that though Concrt SIS might re-
peal the act, the grant itself COULD NOT be-
repealed, but, under the principles of {
higher law" the lands must and would &c
to the Company.
Here it must be explained that in the
terms of the prohibition in the Land Grant
act of Congress against any railroad company
already IN existence obtaining the lands, tht
words constituted or organized" were uset
originally, and material part Of the ai,era
ton and .torgery was that "or' was changed
into and" 1t was through this little
change that the Company were enabled to
contend, as before mentioned, that mas
much as though "constituted" they were MI
"oTganized" until the second day after the
altered Land Grant act had received the
signature OF the President and that, as this
was tqore the act was repealed; their rights
IN the lands, in consequence of their having
been granted to them progpecti0ely by the
Minnesota Legislature, had become "gested''
the same as though conveyed to them in fee
simple, and could not be affected iniuriouslv
by the subsequent repeal of the Congres-
sional grant.
This was and still is their argument and
on this basis judicial contest has been in
stituted, to test the point whether they vii
obtain tie lands despite the repeating act O.
Congress.
But tho manner and circumstances undnJ