Mineral Point weekly tribune. (Mineral Point, Wis.) 1859-1868, 1863-01-07


with other lots. The whole square orig
inally contained l6- 100 acres. About
/ of az acre, on the westerly end, was
finally awarded TO pre-embtors, who be-
came the fee owners thereof.
July 90. 1910, at sale Of public lands.
the officers of the Mineral Point Land
Office sold at auction, the remainder of
tins square of ground, containing about
$500 of an acre TO Robert o. Hoard
William S. Derring and John Lindsay,
County Commissioners of Iowa County,
Wisconsin,, and to their successors in Of
fee. Subsequently the government Of
the United States issued a patent in cons
formity to the sale The County of Iowa
paid the purchase money. Previous to
1910 a log Court House was erected upon
the tract in question, which was used for
the holding of Courts for Iowa County
until the County commenced the erection
of the Stone Court House building now
standing thereon. Since that time the
courts of the County have been held in
this Court House until about one year
ago, when the County Seat of the County
was removed to Dodgevile.
Ii is claimed that the officers of the
town of Mineral Point inform ed Hoard,
Darring and Lindsay at the time they
purchased in 1910, as already stated, that
the town Of Mineral Point would not re-
cogBize any title in the County but that
the municipal authorities of the town
would claim to hold it in trust for the pub
lie use. This was useless ceremony
unless the town had some title In this
square of ground. Since the com pletion
of the stone Court House the County,
near to it and upon the same square,
erected another stone building for the
use of the County officers, and they have
held their Offices therein until about the
first of July, 1861.
These are material facts, ana all that
need be stated in order to determ ne who
is the owner OF the tract of land Ii ques-
ton For the sake of convenience | 3 hail
hereafter designate this tract the " Court
House Square"
| will assume what, perhaps, nc one
will deny, that the United States passed
fee title to this Court House Square by
the sale and issuance of patent therefor
to Hoard, DerriDg and Lindsay. Wheth-
er these men held this title in their own
right, or in trust, has nothing to do with
the question whether the United States
do or DO not own this land. Clearly
they do not.
questions present themselves:
st. Is the City of Mineral Point the
legal or equitable owner Of this Court
House Square?
ID Is the County Of Iowa the legal or
equitable owner Of this land
81. Are Robert G. Hoard William S
Derring and John Lindsay, or their heirs
the legal Jr equitable owners of this
square?
Before passing to the special conside~
ration of these questions, it will be well
to consider those parts of the acts of
Congress above noted.
w hat is the true Interpretation of the
act of July ID, 1886 ? It certainly was
not intended by this act to grant any
land to either of the towns mentioned for
the reason that there are no words OF
grant, or language that can be tortured
INTO words Of grant /; and without such
words or language, showing that Congress:
Intended to TRANSFER from the Federal
Government by gift or grant, it is quite
nbvioos that the tide must remain in the
United States until The government does
some act which will transfer tbat title
When we consider the fact that a con,
siderable number of persons had settled
on the government land IN such numbers
and So near together as to form a village
at each of the towns named In the act,
aud that it would have been uriust to
TO the settlers to have sold this land la
he usual subdivisions; the intent is plain,
and accords with tie languaqe 10 the
act, VIZ, taat those places should be re-
cognizsd as villages, laid out as such, and
soid-not given away, in town lots, or
parcels, less than the usual subdivisions
of government land Thus enabling
each settle TO purchase the littlo spot oc-
cupied BY him.
No more than one sectien Conld be thus
laid out and sold at either point: nor
c5uld the "toacn lots" contain more than
half an acre nor the 'om lots" more
than four acres. No limit was provided
as to the size Of the lots for public use'
called the public squares.
Ii is worthy Of note perhaps, that these
squares are called lots. There were then
three kinds of lots desigated - tots TOR
pubLc use," " toton lots" and ''0ut lots"
The word "lots" includes all lots oy what
ever adjective qualified The act express>
ly provides that "aohen the survey Of the
lots shall be completed. a plat thereof
shall be returned TO the Secretary OF the
Treasury and within six months thereaf-
Ter the lots shall be offered to the highest
bidder, at public safe, under the direction
| of the President of the United States, and
| at such other times as he shall think proper
| Il will be seen, that this applies to al
| the lots, there lis no exception. 1t is no
| declared that the 'topn lots ;" or the ''ou
| lots :" or the "lots for pubic use " shall bt
sold.
There was then, by the language usec
ha SoN
that there was to sell "toWa lots" and s.
Uice UerSe. and just the same authority t.
sell the lots for public use," as there wa
| to sell the ''toacR lots"
Congress muss have understood thii