The Emporia news. [volume] (Emporia, Kan.) 1859-1881, 1876-02-11
THE 100000 ACRES.
I4exIsIaIare Pooling Away
Time.
All for RuncOmbe.

All for BumcOmbe.
When the present Legislature as
sembled the people rather looked to
II, in view of the large number of
members in it who had legislative
and business experience; and in
view of the failure of the last two
or three sessions to accomplish any
thing worthy of note for the per-
manent good of the State, to put in
its time in good work. We
fear they are to be disappointed
unless the present body takes .
speedy depArtnre-sadly disGppoint-
ed. Little has been done except to
wrangle over personal matters, the
organization of the committees, and
to spend the time inmaking bum
combe speeches, and Offering reso-
lutions and bills about the 10000
acres of land which was voted TO
certain railroads by the legislature
of 1866. There are many offices to
fill next year, and 1t begins to look
just . little a. though some Of the
leading members were using their
positions to make political cap
ital, rather than to do valuable
work for the people. We may al
ways expect more or less dema-
goguery in . legislature. We trust
this one will not Guido the average
of it's predecessors in this respect.
We have noticed with some
surprise the large amount of
time consumed, and the large
number of bills and resolutions in
troduced in relation to the celebra-
ted 100000 acres of internal i'm
proVement land given to Kansas by
the act of Congress of1S41. We are
ut g loss to know why this matter
should rest for ten years, and no
movement should be made to in
yestigate it. There has been abund.
ant chance to make all this fuss
within the time since this bill was
passed and yet it has not been done.
Many of the prominent actors now
have been in the legislature several
times since tho law of 1866. Why
have they not shown this anxiety
for the rights anu interests of the
school fund before? Why did they
wait till the lands have nearly all
passed out of the hands of the rail-
road companies and become the
property of individuals 4? 1t is fair,
we presume, to state that at least
one half the land is now owned by
actual settlers, who are improving
it. Why do they want to disturb
these settlers by flimsy lawsuits in
regard to their titles. We believe
the actien OF the legislature of 1866
was legal, and that it is now very
poor business for the State to 60 to
disturbing the titles to peoples
farms for q mere qualification of q
sentiment, or to give some would
he statesman a chance to display his
demagoguery. We fear the present
outburst OF virtue is merely for po-
litical capitAl-only this and moth
ing more.
These 100000 acres have cut some
thing of a figure in politics for
many years. In the last State cam
paign We remember that the Yirtu-
GUS Reformers in some parts OF the
State charged the Republicans with
having stolen the land and robbed
the school fund. We propose to
show that this land not only did
not belong to the school fund, but
that it could never have been set
aside for that purpose. Congress
gave the State two sections in each
township for schools. 1t gave this
100000 acres to Kansas, and to
ever yother state when admit
ted into the Union, for internal i'm
provements. To prove this we
quote from the law of Congress
donating the land: which was pass
ed September 4th, lSIl. Sth Sec
ton OF the act reads:
"There shall be granted to each State
specified in the first section Of this act,
Ave hundred thousand acres OF land for
purposes Of Internal Improvement. =
y And there shall be and hereby IL
granted TO each new State that shall be
hereafter admitted into the Union, uopn
such admission, 80 much land, including
such quantity as may have been granted
TO such State before Its admission, and
while under Territorial government, for
purposes OF Internal Improvement rs
Aforesaid, as shall make hve hundred
thousand acres OF land TO be selected and
located as aforesaid"
Section nine of the same act
reads as follows:
That the lands herein granted to the
states above named shall not be disposed
OF at price less than enc dollar and
twenty-five cents per acre, until other.
Wiseauthorized by . law OF the United
States; and the net proceeds of the sales
OF said lands shall be faithfully applied
IA the States aforesaid, respectively.
namely: roads, railroads, bridges, canals,
and improvements OF water courses, and
draining Of swamps; and such roads
railways. canals, bridges and water.
courses, when made or improved, shall
be free for transportation" etc
So much for the law of Congress
which gave to Kansas this SOC, 0Cc
acres OF land.
The constitution under which we
were admitted into the Union, and
have ever since lived, was framed
ut Wyandotte. In the ordinance Of
this instrument Congress is asked to
donate this same 100000 acres of in
ternal Improvement land to the