The evening telegraph. [volume] (Philadelphia [Pa.]) 1864-1918, 1871-04-19
THE MANNER OF PROCEEDING IN
OBTAINING TITLES TO PUBLIC

Numerous letters, asking for information as
to the necessary steps in obtaining a title to
Western lands held by the United States Gov
ernment, have been received at this Office from
parties who wi sh to take advantage of the laws
regarding the apportionment and settlement of
such tracts. For the benefit of such parties a
short digest of the regulations of the Govern
ment concerning such acquisition of land is here
given; but full and explicit instructions, and
transcript of all acts of Congress relating to the
subject, can be had in neat pamphlet form on
application, by mail or otherwise, to the Com
missioner of the General Land Office, connected
with the Department of the Interior, at Wash
ington, d. c.
A title to an apportionment of the public
lands can be obtained in any one of five ways,
technically and respectively known as purchase
or private entry, location with warrants, loca-
tion with agricultural college scrip, pre-emption,
and homestead. These various methods have
arisen under various laws of Congress- passed
at different times. Another method of acqur-
ing title is by public sale, but this can only be
done at certain times, when proclamation of
such sale has been made by the President of the
United States, or public notice has been given
by the Land Office.
The lands which have been offered at public
sale and remain unsold by reason of withdrawal
or other cause, and the unreserVed lands liable
TO disposal, can be obtained by the first method
of cash purchase or private entry. The pur-
chaser must send a written application TO the
Register of the district in which the lands are
situated, describing the tract and giving its area
If the tract is vacant and the purchaser is elgi-
BILE in various little requirements. duplicate
receipt is forwarded to him in payment of the
purchase money. The Register notifies the Re-
ceiyer, and when the proceedings are found
regular and complete a title will be issued,
either by the General Commissioner at Washing
ton or by the Register at the district land Office
of the State.
For location with warrant an application
must be made as in cash cases, and where the
land is worth $3.50 per acre, the party in addi-
tion to the surrender of the warrant must pay in
cash 81 '25 per acre. The fee of the Register and
Receiver must also be paid which amounts to
from 81 to "a, according to the number of acres
called for by the warrant
Agricultural college scrip may be used to OBJ
tain lands either by location at private entry, or
in payment of pre-empton claims under the
same rules as govern pre-emption of military
land warrants. When used for location by pri-
vate entry it is only applicable to lands not
mineral which may be subject to private entry
at $l'25 per acre. and is restricted to tracts en-
braced within quarter section lines.
Prescriptions are admissible for titles to the
extent of one quarter section, which is one hun
dred and sixty acres Offers can be made upon
offered and unoffered lands, aud on unsurveyed
lands upon which the Indian title has been ex-
tnguished, although in the latter case no title
can be given until the surveys are completed
and Officially returned to the District Land
Office.
When the tract of land is offered. the party
must file statement as to the fact of his settle
ment within thirty days of he date of said