The Weekly Kansas chief. [volume] (Troy, Kan.) 1872-1918, 1876-02-17
The Five Hundred TAuoHsanh
Acres.

The Legislature In again worrying ai,oat the
100000 acres of land granted by the State to Ger
tain railroads, In 1854 and we believe the Alter
ney General has been instructed to sue for their
recovery. The question, in brief, is this: By act
of Congress of l54i. each new State, u?'a its al
mission. is entitled to 10000 acres of public
lands, for purposes of public Improvements. The
Constitution of the State provided that these
Lands in Kansas should be devoted to common
school purposes. But Congress- in the act of a,l-
mission, distinctly declared that it shonld not he
construed as an assent to all or any of the prop
ositions contained in the Ordinance TO the Con
stituiion. One of these propositions was regard
ing the 500 600 acrrs stated abnve and it was
decidedly declaration by Congress that the
lands should be devoted to works of internal
Improvement. The Legislature of 1866 SO derot-
ed il, by dividing it among four of the most i'm
portant railroads in the State The St. Joseph
and Denver Road was one of them. Hence all
this fuss about the 100000 acre stolen from the
school fund. Congress. he it remembered, had
yet aside every 10th and 36th section for school
purposes, aside from this 100000 acres.
We notice that one A. Ellis, (whom we sup
pose to he our old friend, Abram Ellis with one
of Quantrels bullet holes in his forhead,) writes
tn the Topeka Commonwealth a history of the at
tempt to devote these lands To the purpose of
building bridges, in 1868. He says it passed. the
House, and was defeated is the Senate by Juhn-
son Clark, of Miami County, ON a trifling amend
.hent. He also says that many votes were oh
tanned for the measure, by promises Of making
United States jurynien OF members, which WAS
tn ha a I.sir-
gives what he thinks is a correct list of the
members of the Senate and House from Leaven-
worth County, all bat one of whom were Demo
Gratis. Among the Senators. he says, was wu
Mcdowell, afterwards U. S. Marshal.
Mr.. Ellis could not well have crowded more
mistakes into his article than he has WIN. ac-
Dowell was never a member of the Senate but
it was his brother, John H. Mcdowell. James
l.. Mcdowell was the Marshal, and he was
Republican, and no relation to the Others But
at the session Of 1863, nearly all the members of
the House from Leavenworth were Republicans,
prominent among " hom was Uncle Aba Brown
Kellog, of Leavenworth was Speaker, and Judge
Idle was a member. In the Senate were John
Wilson and C. b. Pierce, Republicans, and +. p
Fitzwilam, Democrat. As We were there, We
no special credit, more than Others for defeating
the bill. The opposition was thoroughly organ
ized, and the majority, though small, was firm
But one man deserted from that side and that
was S. NJ. Strickler, of Junction City, who had
the credit of being influenced by the appoint
ment of Brigader General of the Maltia by Gov. |
Carney. The scheme was defeated on a square
vote on the bill itself, and was beaten through
all the parliamentary manoeuvers, until their re-
sources were exhausted, and the thing was too |
i, adj TO resurreet.
Nor were there any votes bought with pronis- |
rs of making jurymcn. The Henderson Amend
nent was the great question at that session, and |
Atchison left nothing undone to secure votes.
Her great enemy and rival Leavenwortl. must
be got to help her, or the thing was dead. Leav
,nworth then monopolized nearly the entire
Wholesale trade of Southern and Western Kan
as; but the Kaw River great hindrance,
md bridges were of vital Importance. She had
IN eye on the 100000 acres of land to bnild
ridges at three four favorite points on the
law. Atchison promised To help her, in return
or aid ON the Henderson Amendment PROPOSE
ion. Leavenworth voted solilly with Atehisnn.
nd won, the day. On the bridge question, the
-tchison influence went soldy with Leavrn
Torth, but the scheme was defeated in the
enate.
In 1866, not 1864. the 500 900 acres were given
D the railroads. Click, of Archis0n, was mem.
er of the House, at both sessions. He hal sup
orted the bridge proposition, arguing its consti-
ntionality; but he was the leader in opposition
D the railroad project, denonncing it as uncon-
Atchison had no share of
lie lands. The Lawrence members also opposed
as unconstitutional, and the papers howled {
5ainst it, until the Galveston X ai was nclu d. a
], when members and papers became convinced Il
its constitutionality, and supported the meas Il
re. Mr.. Lacock, of Brown, had been a member il
the house in 1865 and was a member in 1856.
Q had opposed the bridge proposition as uncon- r
and opposed the railroad grant upon :.
q same ground. The people of Hiawatha, be-
9 interested in the Denver Road got up an in
gnation meeting, and sent delegation to Tope
!, to erdeavor to change him; but rather than
ey instructions, he resigned his seat, and went
me. p
/ n