The weekly pioneer and Democrat. [volume] (Saint Paul, Minn. Territory) 1855-1865, 1858-04-08

1A-.nAeet inertAou ~ the Land GrAHt car
be carried into effect.
/ Observe also, the strong corrohorstio,
which this construction receives from tho
remainder OF Section Four. After ensctins
that leo sections for each road or branch
ns1y Be sold: the section provides that " hen
twenty continuous miles OF road are COM
pleted, then a.Hser quantity OF 100 section,
may in like manner be sold; and SO on from,
time TO time. Not word of completion,
as condition precedent. until the second
body OF land-tsnoaa- quantity-is under
consideration. Surely the English language
Is incapable of expressing with greater Ger.
tainty the construction for which We con.
tend. and which has been so unhesitatingly
adopted by the Legislatures Of Wisconsin
and Minnesota
l have in my possession an elaborate
opinion of Greene c. Bronson. an eminent
jurist Of New York, formerly Chief Justice
of the State, sustaining this view of the
subject; but it cannot be necessary to re-
produce il on this occasion.
l may be allowed. however. for the sake
OF illustration, to cite the steps which the
Minnesota and Pacific Railroad Company
directed to be taken. for the purpose of as
sorting its own rights and transferring to the
State, security required by the terms of
the Loan Of State Credit. The Board Of Dr.
rectors instructed the Chief Engineer to
divide the main line from saltwater to
Breckenridge. and the branch line from st.
Anthony TO Crow Wing, both routes having
been approved by the Department of the
Interior. into sections of twenty continuous
miles The officers of the company then pro.
ceeded to ascertain, where, on these respec-
tive lines, aquantity of railroad lands equal
to 40 sections could be found resting on a
continuous length of twenty miles. Of
course, for some distance, hardly a vacant
acre could be found but. at length, in the
Big Woods on the main line. and between
Saint Cloud and Crow Wing on the branch
line the respective bodies of land were found
Now, except for the obligation to the State.
the Minnesota and Pacific Company would
have had a perfect right to sell those guam
titles of land. each seventy six thousand
eight hundred acres or one hundred and ffty-
three thousand six hundred acres in all.
They are, in the language of the Constitu-
ton, the IN rst two hundred and forty sec
tons which such company" has become 'au-
thc-sed to sell - and the power to sell that
quantity results from the fact that the Min
nesota and Pacific Railroad Company has .
main line and . branch line, and may there
fore avail itself, in advance of construction,
of the two quantities of land of one hun
dred and twenty sections each. When called
upon to execute the landed security to the
State required by the Constitutional Amend
ment of April 18th, 1855. the company, at
ter executing conveyance in general terms,
obtained the consent Of the Executive of
the State, to annex schedules of the lands
thus separated from the mass of the Land
Grant, and transferred them to the State.
with ample covenants, Of course, to supply
any deficiency which might exist after final
adjustment with the Federal Government.
Governor Sibley did not fail TO oommuni-
cate 10 ths Commissioner of the Land Office
not only the Legislation Of Minnesota. but
the constructio placed upon the jus dsspo-
ne,sdi Of the fourth Section by the Railroad
Companies Of the State No intimation has
been received adverse to the view here ad-
vanced, and, indeed, under the decision of
Attorney General Black, the whole subject
seems TO be removed from the supervision
of the Land Office, except simply to asoer-
tain and report schedules Of the lands grant
ed by Congress. This appears to he the de-
finite conclusion Of Hon. L. A. Hendricks.
who. ina communication to Governor Sibley.
dated July 80, 1853, holds the following
language
Referring to the fourth Section of the
said Act of March 3, 1857. making the
Railroad Grant, which prescribes the terms
upon which the State may sell one hun
dred and twenty sections from time TO time.
have to state, that we take no heed Of
what the State may do in that respect, SO
far As our action is concerned in making out
lists OF selections and certifying the same.
that being condition of which the State
must take cognizsnce herself, SO as TO avoid
making sales not warranted by law. All we
have TO do is to certify the selections law
fully made, leaving the State 10 fulfil the
conditions the grant has imposed upon her.
thereby avoiding the penalty of forfeiture,
and saving her vendees from being the re-
cipients Of invalid titles
In other words, the State Of Minnesota
and the Land Grant Railroad Companies.
are requested 10 read Section four for them
selves and deliberately to determine its i'm
port.
In October 1857, therefore. after summer
actively passed by the different companies
in the survey and location of their lines.
the muniicent Land Grant was Immediately
available, that Is to say. could be sold, to
the following extent, all beyond being a
basis of credit merely
4anestn and Poase Company. having
main and branch line, might
s>ll two quantities Of one hun-