The Wheeling daily intelligencer. [volume] (Wheeling, W. Va.) 1865-1903, 1878-07-29
VIRGINIA LAND titles.

uE0 tlnaiNtfA LHNo
100000 Acres and Something
About Them-880, 900 Acres Of
Bogus Land SOLD in Mcdowell
County.
PHILADELPHIA, July 81
Correspondents oil the IntellisGneer.
/ notice that, like many Other papers
here and elsewhere, the 1srELLIdEacER,
some two weeks ago, copied from the
New York World q sensational para
graph relating to the vast estates pos
Ressed in west Virginia BY the Hon.
Samuel :. Randall and derived from the
State Of Virginia somehow in payment
Of a large amount Of money which The
old Commonwealth at one time owed to
Col. james Swan, Of revolutionary mem.
Org. Had you known that all this was
The purest romance, you would have left
Il unclipped; hence the liberty take in
sending you this correction. The Hon.
Samuel does no. own q single acre Of
ground 10 your State, but his brother
Robert still holds few tracts there as
Trustee for the estate Of the late Col.
swan above named. Again, this distin.
guished adventursr never In his lie was
creditor OF The State Of Virginia, but,
on the contrary, figured eonspiouously on
her ledger as debtor for a very large
amount OF delinquent taxes on some
100000 ACRES OF LAND, M
which he claimed under more or less per.
feet titles within her limits. Failing to
settle this little Item while he was carry.
ing on stupendous speoulstions and liv-
Ing like q prince on the European Con-
tinent, his lands became forfeited To the
commonwealth, and when at last bank.
rupt aud tired Of the debtors Jail In
Paris, he surrendered his estate to his
creditors in payment Of about 90 1000, 900
francs which be honestly owed, and these
gentlemen came over here 10 take posses.
sion. They very soon found they were
simply holding the bag, however, through
the beguiiing arts OF a shrewd and active
agent Of these creditors, the General As
sembly OF Virginia was induced to release
the lands aforesaid from forfeiture against
payment OF all taxes with interest, etc.
and passed an act to that effect on the 18th
Of March, 1888, Hon. Benz. II. Smith,
then member from Kanawha, being The
Trainer OF the bill. The Trustee ap.
pointed by the act was john Peter Dl.
mas, Of Paris, and after his death, in
lS47, two factions Of the creditors,
respectively headed by his sons Emile
and Charles, commended for the succession
In the trust. which the 8. Court at
Charleston finally awarded to the Hon.
Josiah Randall Of this city, whose present
successor is his son, Robert E above
mentioned. g.. ....t,y -.
After stating this much, II may be In.
teresting 10 add that up 10 this date the
creditors Of Swan, the heirs and assigns,
have never, to the best OF my knowledge
and belief, Realised one single dollar from
this vast estate. For more than twenty
years after the act Of release they heal
lated and Numbered from one mistake into
another and through conceit and neglect
as well as ignorance Of slhe laws govern
ing the subject, they failed to enter upon
the liquidation in practical and sensi-
bic manner. a ..Iu ~
TRACT AFTER TRACT DROPPED FROM THErR
, HANDS .'Is' ~
through delinquency in the assessment or
payment OF taxes, through failure 10
identify, and BY permitting adverse
claims 10 mature under the statute OF
limitation. Upon the principle OF Ro.
man law, that real property can never be
alienated except by voluntary act OF the
owner, they little needed the admonltions
Of their agents aud attorneys and even
entertained the presumption that, should
even State legislation sweep every acre
out OF their hands, they still would Oh.
tain redress through constitutional trea.
ties. As o result, the once notorious
Swan estate Is now scarcely known by
name 10 more than three or four out OF
the sixteen counties over which II was
originally scattered, and is now princi.
pally in possession OF the people Of West
Virginia who had thought themselves Sc.
riousIy aggrieved by the act Of 1888.
In the meantime the litigations which
have directly or collaterally grown oai Of
this once princeiy domain would Gil vol.
umes and involve every degree OF legal
intricacy and crooked human nature.
More than one.half Of them were entailed
by transactions OF Swan before and after
the forfeiture, and the amount Of time,
labor and money squandered upon IN.
tenable issues Ia simply incredible. Nor
10 the end yet, II / am properly informed.
Il Is now coatended by cheeky speoula.
Tor that Swan really never assigned his
lands which are to be claimed by his heirs
who reside In Massachusetts. Although
with or without an assignmentfr from Swan
to his creditors, these parties have not a
shadow Of claim, there 10 scarcely q
doubt but that they will End hackers and
Ia that case we shall soon here of another
Jennings estate with millions in it.
One Of the pernieious results Of the un.
settled condition Of the Swan and other
estates for three.quarters Of n century
past 10 the flooding Of the eastern markets
with any amount Of defective and even
totally spurious titles with which,
strange as it may seem, In the face Of re-
pea,ed exposure, somebody Is continually
being duped. Tho recent New York
sale Of 100000 acres Of bogus lands In
Mcdowell county, W. Va, At one to three
cent? per acre is one Of score that came
under my observation for the last two
years. Much Of this sort Of mischief Is
facilitated by carelessness or collusion
IN the certificates furnished by the West
Virginia officials, and should be stopped
by legislative intervention II what West
Virginia land titles have left Of repnta.
ton 10 worth saving At all. D. D.
The Land Grant Decision.