The Superior times. [volume] (Superior, Wis.) 1870-1912, 1878-06-01

filed bill in equity in the United
States court against the West Wis
consin Railroad Company, drumming
in connection with the Chicago d
Northwestern from EIroy to St.
Paul. the Chicago, Portage q
Superior Company, Gan incomplete
line now running from Chicago to
Lake Geneva and laid out to Supe-
rior) the North Wisconsin Railroad
Company, with 40 miles of track
north from Iudson) the Wisconsin
Central Railroad Company, and the
State Treasurer of Wisconsin. The
bill in equity asked a construction
by the court of the land grant acts
of Congress Of 1856 and 1861.
granting land to the State of Wis.
consin 10 aid in the construction of
railroad from Madison and Column
bus to Portage, thence to Lake st.
Croix, and from thence to the head
of Lake Superior and TO Bayfield,,
and from Lake Winnebago to the
head of Lake Superior; and the bill
asked that the just proportion Of
lands be given to that company (the
Madison e Portage) for their 80
miles of road. The Wisconsin
Central Company was made party
because their road, now running
from Milwaukee and from Portage
to Ashland on Lake Superior,
crosses a part Of the grant, and has
also a grant running from Ashland
to Duluth overlapping the St. Croix
grant. The State Treasurer is a
party because all the IN oneys col
lected for trespass, the stumpage of
lum Der, the hay and wood, amount
ing to 100000 or 100000, is in
the State treasury awaiting decis-
ion as to the proportions OF land
and money collected due to the sew
eral companies. Answers were
tiled by the several companies, and
the Wisconsin Farm & Mortgage
Company formed by law OF the
State, and claiming certain Of the
lands to indemnify owners OF farms
who mortgaged them to aid in the
construction OF the Milwaukee & St.
Paul Railroad) also put in appear
auce and fled cross-bIll claiming
that fractional share of the lands
applicable to the construction Of
the old Milwaukee 81 La Crosse
road from Portage to Tomah. The
! West Wisconsin Railroad COMPANY
also filed a ss-blI, asking the
court to say how much land the
company was entitled to on its COM
pleted road. The case came up be-
fore Judge Drummond and Hop
kins in June, 1877, for a final hear
ing, and Judges Drummond APP
pointed Hon. j. b. Cassaday, of
GAINESVILLE, a special master IN chan
Gerry "to examine, ascertain and re-
port the facts as to any grant made
by the State Of Wisconsin to the
various companies named under the
land grant acts OF Congress Of 1856
and 1864; when the various roads
were contracted or any part of
them, when completed; extent and
manner of construction; what lands
have been conveyed by regular
title by the State and the United
States to the several companies,
with descri ptlon Of such lands, what
money has been collected by the
State, and under what laws the
tribute was taken by which the
money came into the State treasury;
also how far and il what manner the
railroad from Madison and Colum
bus TO Portage and thence TO the
! west end of Lake Superior and TO
Bayfield, by way of Lake St. Croix
! by the act of 1856 conflicts and IN
terferes with a land grant made for
a road from Lake Winnebago to
Bayfield, and. Lake Superior the
Wisconsin Central how far, also
this is q repetition of the same
question-the grant by the first sec
ton of the act Of 1864 to what is
now known as the North Viscon-
sin Railroad Company, interferes or
conflicts with the grant by section
three OF the same act to what is
now known as the Wisconsin Cen
trail Railroad Company, with des-
eruption OF such lands" The order
, further states that Mr.. Cassaday,
the said special master in chancery,
shall give his opinion on the various
questions above mentioned and 9th
er facts and circumstances in his
Judgment material to the subject
matter of such reference, together
: with his opinion thereon.
The original computed amount of
the ST. Croix land grant, to the
State, was ,2l3, 1927 acres, but some
600, 900 or 70O,0 more are claimed
as due from the general govern
ment, and the land, exclusive of
: mineral and pine tracts, is worth on
an average, So an acre. Some por-
tons are the most valuable pine
lands in the Northwest, and the
mineral lands of the Penoka ridge,
across which some of the grant
reaches, are worth still more. OF
these lands, already patented to the
) State, the West Wisconsin Railroad
Company has received 75s, 600 acres,
| and claims about 100, 200 acres more
on account of lands included in the
grant along it's line of track which
have been taken up by actual settlers,
and which the land grant law pro-
vided might be made up from any
other adjoining unoccupied lands
within 20 miles, which Is called the
indemnify Limit OF conrco thnrn