New Orleans Republican. [volume] (New Orleans, La) 1867-1878, 1874-05-29

The following is from the Washington
correspondent of the New York Tribune:
A bill is now pending before the House
Committee ON Private Land Claims to
further extend the provisions of the act
entitled IAN act for the final adjustment Of
private land claims in the States OF Florida,
Louisiana and Missouri, and tor other pur-
poses'" Information has been received
from New Orleans that this bill, SO far as it
refers to Louisiana, is intended to cover
one Of the largest land-steals on record.
Many persons will remember seeing on
maps of that State large tracts of land rep
resented as covered by ''uncontirmed pri-
waite land claims" The unconfrmed title
to these lands was supposed TO rest on
grants made before the United States Oh
tanned possession of the territory.
After the cession Of the Province of
Louisiana" to France by Spain, in 1900, the
Spanish local officers, who continued to re-
side at Baton Rouge, made great number
OF extensive grants Of lands to their favor
ties tor nominal sums of money, not taking
care iu some cases even to exclude from the
tracts thus granted land that had already
been given to settlers. Some OF these
grants were made under circumstances and
upon conditions that would have made
them void even under the Spanish govern
ment, had that power still retained domln-
ion over the territory. For these reasons
a very large class of these unconfrmed
claims were not recognized by the United
States government for nearly half CEN
fury.
In 1860 an act was passed ostensibly for
the final adjustment OF the claims, the val
idity of which were generally admitted
fStatututes at Large, volume twelve, page
eigh,y.iye), but which did not, in reality
exclude from adjudication those which orig
mated as described above. This act was
renewed and extended by supplemental
acts of March 2 1867, and January 10, 1872,
and will remain in force until June, 1875.
Under the provisions of these acts, and
especially under that of March 2, 1867, suits
have been brought against the United
States for the confirmation OF millions OF
acres of these old fraudulent Spanish grants,
not with view of getting possession of the
land they originally covered, but for the
purpose of obtaining instead certificates OF
location or land scrip which may be located
on any government land WITHIN the poruers
OF the United States.
These suits have been brought in Judge
Durelrs court in New Orleans, and in
every case argued before him he has rem
dered a decree against the United States
awarding the scrip, and as some OF these
claims are for very large tracts OF land, the
aggregate, if this operation IS not stopped,
will, it is believed, be millions OF acres.
The suits are brought by lawyers, some OF
them of doubtful character, and the only
authority they show as the legal repre-
sentatives of the original grantees consists
of their own ex parte atfidavits. 1t has al
ready been ascertained and proved that
some of these claims were owned by other
nersons than those named in Judge Durelfs
DEGREES. and this fact makes it highly prob
able that many OF them are prosecuted by
LAWYERS without the knowledge of the heirs
or legal successors OF the original grantees,
and for their own benefit.
Having obtained decree, these people
next undertook to get patents for the land.
When they applied at the General Land
Office Commissioner DrummOnd decided
that the scrip might be delivered to the at
torney. and could be located by any holder,
out that the patent for the land must issue
70 the name of the original grantee or his
heirs, and that an assignment or transfer OF
the scrip would not warrant MIN TO make
out the patent to any other person; Inns
decision has thus far saved the United
States, since the scrip under it is OF com
paratively little value to the holders, ana IS
therefore not negotiable unless the assignee
can obtain patent for the land he selects
in his own name. The three important
points of this case that can, without doubt,
be established are these:
Firs.-The original Spanish grant was in
a great number OF the cases fraudulent and
void.
Second-The Spanish grantee in major
ity OF the cases sold off, during his lifetime,
the land in parcels to actual settlers.
Third-An attorney, with no evidence
but his own affidavit that he represents the
grantee or his heirs, appears in court, gets
a decree confirming the old grant, takes in
it's place land scrip that may be located