The Buchanan County guardian. (Independence, Buchanan County, Iowa) 1858-1864, 1864-03-22

It that when the Roads accepted of thi
e grant, 1t became contract between th
o State and Co.'S and he was not aware Q
n any principle Of law by which one part
S to contract could pronounce it void
4 without the consent or without hearing
J. on the part Of the other party. If tn
$ Stale is responsible to no one, if it Cal
e make and unmake contracts as it pleases
E. if THE State can resume the lands for
good cause without giving the other par
. ty hearing, it can resume without
3 cause, and such state Of affairs woulc
at least make the State dangerous party
to deal with.
J The State has sold lands to actual set
tiers, which it was afterwards decided new
er belonged to the State. Congress, te
indemnify these parties, grant us another
! 5000 acres to settle these difficulties
and to be used for no other purpose.
How then can the State become any the
poorer by giving these Roads just as
many acres of these indemnity lands as
she has sold OF heir lands ? If the Com
panies were willing to release lands
worth five dollars per acre, and take in
lieu thereof, lands not worth seventy. five
cents per acre, is not the loss all with the
Railroads I? and is it not all we can in
Justice ask OF them +?
1t gives the settler perfect title with
out cost to them, and by the only party
competent to convey. This is the short
est, the cheapest, and the only safe
course TO follow with the good Of the set.
tier in view. And right here let me say
that have been authorized and request.
ed to state that the settlers in Boon Co.
are decidedly, emphatcally and unani-
mously opposed to resumption. Over
$4,000 acres of these disputed lands are
IN that county, and most, If not all, con.
verted into farms. These farmers held
meeting, raised money and sent an
Agent down here to look after their in
terests, and do all in his power to pre-.
vent resumption. One man told me, and,
by the way, he is one of the first men in
the State, and man of integIity, that
his house, his barns, and nearly all he
possesses, are on these lands, and he
wished us TO settle these difficulties as
this substitute proposes /; but if you can
not, ,ssaid he, don't for hearen's sake 70.
same
Are the people of Boone county capa.
bic OF representing their own interests :?
Are weswiser for them than they are for
themselves Then what becomes Of all
this sympathy for the "poor settler"
tell you, gentlemen, this sympathy all
comes from the Navigation Company,
and is just such sympathy as the yu!ture
has for the lamb The tears which gen.
tlemen have shed SO copiously for the
settlers" and the sturdy yeomanry"
have been injected into them by that
sympathetic, philanthropic institution.
the Navigation Company. Mr.. Magill's
Bill provides that those who purchased
OF the Navigation Company, Company
which had no title. shall now pay to the
real owner, the railroad company, the
purchase money still due. Does that
not deal justly with them. also When
these things are done the State is out of
the difficulty, the settlers claims are per-
fected, and the only two parties out in
the cold are the Railroad Companies and
the Navigation Company. We leave
them TO the onlg tribunal which can de-
termine and adjus: their claims-the
Courts. There is where they will even
tually be driven, and all Legislation upon
the subject viii only serve to complicate
and delay settlement. II is now in our
poWeI W pursue Auts COURSE aHu TelleNe
all future legislation Of this exceedingly
complicated and perplexing subject,
Now let US enquire what would be the
effect Of resumption !? 1t would unsettle
the claims OF the actual settler and place
them in very perplexing state OF un-
certainty.
! Ii would cause endless litigation and
expense to all concerned II would give
another twist to this already almost in.
extrcably Gordian knot and at last re-.
sui, in throwing all these lands in the
hands of tha, thoroughly deserted insti.
tuition, the Navigation Company. Sec
ton a2io Of the Revision Of 1860 rea Is
as follows: when deed purports to
convey greater interest than the grant.
or was at the time possessed OF. any after
acquired interests OF such grantor to the
extent of that which the deed purpor,s
10 convey euures 10 the benet, of the
grantee" In this case. the State sold