The weekly Ottumwa courier. [volume] (Ottumwa, Iowa) 1857-1872, 1860-01-19
OTTUMWA, IOWA, THURSDAY, JANUARY l9, 1860

/ Union, Congress passed an act offering one
/ quarter section of lard to every private mu-
Sician, and non-commissioned officer who
would enter and serve a given period in the
/ Mexican war. This war closed about the
! time that our best lands were being brought
into market vast numbers ofthese warrants
we've issued and were located in this State,
absorbing a large proportion ofour best lands.
As they formed part of the contract of en-
| listment, they could not have been withheld
| by the government without an act OF bad
| faith, not so however ifthev were in fact only
bounties. But they were issued in discharge
of a consideration that had been given in the
! form of military services, and their subse-
quent redemption in land, constituted sale
| in the sense of the law as well as the COM
pact. Such is the opinion of the best iuriSt
/ in the country. | have appealed in vain to
! the Secretary Of the interior Tor the pa vment
Of the per cent. upon these warrants, that
now approXimates to q million of dollars. On
going TO Washington to institute suit in
the court of claims, as was directed TO do
by joint resolution adopted at Your last
! General Assembly, was strongly dissuaded
from doing so, for the reason that it would be
a useless expenditure of money-that the
decisions of that court settled nothing-that
they were only equivalent TO a report made
by a committee of either House of Congress,
and We're as frequently overruled-tbat the
relief after all must come through Congress.
Eminently unjust as is the on-payment of
this fu nd fol the reasons assigned, Iowa is
not the only party complaining. Other west
ern States stand in the same category. but
not so largely implicated. They propose to
abide their time till after the next federal
/ census and apportonment, which will give
! the west some Is or 30 additional represen-
tatives NV opinion is that we had better
/ do the same thing
The navmcnt of this fund is not mere
favor which we are asking of the General
/ Government, but a subSisting legal right
which could be enforced in court of Justice,
was there tribunal of this kind clothed with
the requisite jurisdiction.
SCHOOL FUND AND LANDs-The AGENTS
empfeyed to investigate the affairs of the
different School Fund Commissioners in the
State, found many irregularities and abuses
IN the official Wisclsass,e Of their duties. md
! in the counties of Ainmakoe, Gaiskasaw.
Clarke, Decatur, Gayetse. jones. Madison.
Mitchell, Story and Wapeilo, they discovered
defalcationS to an amount exceeding 800
900. Their reports, however, in some in
stances, We're not entirely clear and satiSfac-
tory, and probably may have done some the
officers injustice. The law makes it the duty
/ Of the County Judges in all such cases to
/ bring the matter to the notice of the District
Attorney for the purpose Of instituting legal
/ proceedings. ! am of the opinion that the
/ interest of the State School Fund would be
better suhserved by authorizing the Auditor
/ Of State or the Secretary of the Board cf Ed
ucation Col Benton,) to re investigate the
accounts Of the School Fund Commissioners
in the counties mentioned, with view of
ascertainng with greater certainty the real
facts in each case; this being done to clothe
Snch officer with full power to arrange ami
cablv with the defaulting Commissioner the
amount found to be due. by allowing time and
good security. Ifhe should fail in this, then
to supply the District Attorney with such a
statement Of facts that he nav proceed with
safety, and with less liability to involve tho
State In cost. Indeed il would be well to in
vest some officer with full discretionary power
to settle such cases in the method that will
with the least expense, protect the State
against loss.
had the honor, at your last regular ses-
les, the frauds and abuses alleged to have
been practiced in Tama County in the sale
: of the 9Th section. The law required that
the land should be offered at public sales
three different times, six months or more
apart, before they shall he subject to private
entry. In January, 1857, 3 900 acres were
offered at public sale in said county, (beinr
the first and only time they were so offrredl
! nd -, u q, 1; 4
ders, as the charge was made to prevent
actual bidders from becoming purchasers -
| After the sale these bidders privately forfeit
ed their bids, after which the parties for whom
| they acted, purchased the same at private
entry at the appraised value thereof If this
was true, the sale was fraud upon the peo-
pie as well as clear violation of the law, and
consequently VOID, and | so directed the Co
Judge TO declare them, which he accordingly
did. ! have since learned that some of these
pretended purchasers were unwilling to have
their lands so treated, and would contest,
their titles with the State, while others would
give them up if their money could be refund
ed with interest. As the executive officer
ofthe State, it was NV duty to insist upon
strict observance of the law. 1t is quite
competent for you to do otherwise and inview
OF the altered condition of things in the State,
the fall of property, &c, would now recon-
mend the passage of law that should LEGAL
ize these sales, and vest in the several pur-
chasers the legal title to the lands in ques-
tlon, with the privilege, however, to such as
desire it, to surrender back the land to the
County Judge, upon being reimbursed, the
money paid, with interest This option
should be given, for the reason that the sale
had been declared void bv me, and some of
the parties may have made other arrange
ments. Such disposition of the difficulty
would obviate the expense and vexation of
law suits, and ut the same time, under all
| the circumstances, further the interest ofthe
| School Fund.
| 100000 ACRE GRANT-In the selection of
! these lands the agents employed returned an
excess of 22,660.03 acres, which by some
mistake was approved and entered upon the
tract books both in the General Land Office
at Washington and upon our own books in
the Registers office.
was urged, and learned my predecessors
had been, to return back to the General Coy
ernment list of lands to be taken from the
original selections, properly described, that
should he equal to this excess. Upon very
full enquiry, found that this could not be
done without interfering with the rights of
innocent purchasers, that the entire grant.
including part Of this excess, had alreadr
been sold, leaving about 1878, 25 acres IN
disposed of. Perceiving no good reason
why this last amount should not be given
back, list containing proper description
OF the same was duly returned. and an ar
rangement was made with the Commissioners
| of the General Land Office tn the effact that