Mineral Point tribune. (Mineral Point, Wis.) 1869-1938, 1878-07-31

pany to reimburse it for the expenditure
made, or whether government
should sell the land at stipu-
lated price, and pay the proceeds
arising therefrom to said COM
pany were considered immaterlal,
both by the government and the COM
pany that accepted the grant with the
condition. The fact that said company
SO understood this grant, is made evil
dent by circular issued by it's land
commissioner, dated May IL, 1873, in
wiling purchase Of its lands. in which
he says, The road was accepted by the
government rs complete about six
months ago. In three years from that
time the road lands will be subject, we
suppose, to the pre-emption law. but We
hope and expect to have all our lands
sold before that time arrives. All rail-
road lands sold by this company are
sold clear Of taxes. with the assurance
of a perfect title when paid for"
More than four years having elapsed
since the completion of said road and
its acceptance by the president at the
time Mr.. Dudymott filed his declara-
tory statement for the tracts in question,
l am of the opinion that his application
should have been received by the local
officers, subject, however, to the con-
dition that it be made to appear, be-
fore a final certificate Issue to him,
that at the time his declaratory state
ment was filed for said tract, said COM
pany had not sold or disposed of the
same.
If the views have expressed in re-
lation to the sale and disposal of said
lands are correct, and l see no reason
to doubt their correctness, the sale and
disposal Of lands in the condition OF
these applied for, if unsold at that
time by said company, is clearly within
the jurisdiction of the land office, like
other lands. By the terms of the
grant by which said lands, or proceeds
which shall arise from the sale thereof,
Injured to said company, it is provided
that the lands remaining unsold at the
expiration of three years from the
time when the entire road
was completed, shall be subject to set
Element and presumption, like other
lands, at a price not exceeding 81 25
per acre. In other words, that said
lands shall revert to the public domain
for sale and disposal for said company,
under the pre-emption laws of the
United States, and whether it be con-
sidered that said lands are public lands
in general or special sense cannot, in
my opinion, affect the jurisdiction of
the land Office in making sale and the
disposal Of the same. III
The decision concludes with directions
to local officers for its enforcement, and
says: "In making returns of moneys
arising from the sale of said lands.
local officers should be instructed to
keep a separate account of lands sold
and moneys received therefor on &C
count of said company, in order that
the same may be passed to its
credit. In this case, inasmuch as it
does not satisfactorily appear whether
the lands applied for had been sold by
the company at the time Mr.. Dudymott
filed his declaratOry statement, the
Commissioner Of the Land Office
will instruct local officers to call
upon said company for statement
showing whether said lands had been
sold by it at that time, and, if it refuse or
neglect to furnish such statement with
in thirty days after the services of said
notice, that they order hearing to de-
termine that fact.
GONE WEST. ...
Washington advices Of July 22nd
give some further information concern
ing the increase of sales of public lands
in the west for the year 1878. The
statement of Commissioner Williamson
was prepared from the records in his
Office, and is valuable at this time. In
nearly all the prominent eastern cities
societies Of emigration have been en-
gagged in forming colonies from among
mechanics and unemployed laborers
with view Of settling them by COM
panies or colonies on the rich lands
of the west, and thus relieving the
cities of their superhuous and idle
population. AS Commissioner Will
hanson says, all this is certainly the
good that has come from the evil
Of hard times. The mechanics, instead
of sitting down to groan over the dull
ness of business prospects, have packed
up their families and gone where work
will bring an honest return.
Taking Dakota, Kansas, Minnesota
and Nebraska, the comparative state
ment OF the disposal of lands during
the above period shows how vastly the
emigration has increased. Lands are
disposed of by cash purchase, by
HON estead settlement, for timber cul-
ture, and by warrant and scrip location
-four different methods-and the
records IF each are nreseryed sanor