Iron County register. [volume] (Ironton, Iron County, Mo.) 1867-1965, 1882-05-11
A LITTLE BILL TO STIR UP
LITIGATION.
And Make Fees for Officers.

The following Is the text Of the bill
concerning Graduated Land Entries,
introduced a few days since into both
Houses of Congress:
ABILL TO QUIET TITLES TO LANDS IN MIS-
souri, ENTERED UNDER THE GRADUATION
ACT.
Be it enacted By the Senate and House OF
Representatives. ofthe United States of Amer
ica in Congress assembled, That all entries of
public lands under the act Of Congress en-
titled can act to graduate and reduce the
price of public lands subject to entry to actu-
al settlers and cultivators," approved August
fourth, eighteen hundred and fifty -four,
made prior to the passage Of this act, for
which the entrance-money has been paid,
and which have been conveyed to innocent
purchasers for value, are hereby legalized
and confirmed, whether such entries were
made by persons in their own names, in as
sumed names, or in the names Of fictitious
persons: Prorided, That the conveyances
under which such innocent purchasers claim
title shall have been recorded in the office of
the recorder of deeds of the county wherein
the land lies, prior to the first day of Janu-
airy, eighteen hundred and eighty; or the I'll
tie is claimed under judicial sale made to
such purchaser for taxes prior to the first
day of April, eighteen hundred and eighty
two: And provided further, That in any case
where the title claimed by such innocent pur-
chaser is defective, by reason of any fraud or
irregularity in any conveyance recorded prior
to January first, eighteen hundred and sew
enty-five, to which fraud or irregularity he is
not party, the title of the United States
thereto is hereby relinquished to such inno-
cent purchaser: And prorided further, That
in any suit or proceeding instituted by the
United States, within five years afterthe date
hereof, for the reclamation of any said lands,
the burden of proof shall be upon the party
claiming the same to show that he or those
under whom he claims title were, on said
first day Of April, eighteen hundred and
eighty-two, if he claims under judicial sale
made for taxes, or on said first day Of Janua-
~, eighteen hundred and eighty, if he claims
under any other conveyance, innocent pur
chasers for value.
SEC. 9. That nothing I'm this act shall
abridge, impair, or in any way prejudice the
right of the United States to vacate any entry
made under said act, or to annul any patent
issued thereon, by reason of fraud or evasion
on the part of the person making or causing
to be made such entry, or in obtaining the
patent from the United States except in the
cases hereinbefore provided for; nor shall
this act be so construed as to affect the rights
of conflicting claimants as between. them |
selves.
The title of the bill, ito quiet titles
to lands in Missouri" is a lie and q |
fraud. 1t quiets no title that is not
quieted under existing laws, and gives |
an excuse to ambitious and self-seeking |
Government officials to rip up titles
which for twenty-five years have stood
firm, tacitly acknowledged as perfect
by the United States. These lands |
Were entered between the years 1856 |
and 1860, the bulk of them at 123 cents
per acre, under the graduation act |
which was repealed i'm 1869. The pur-
chase-money was paid in every in
stance, and the Government relin-
quished it's title upon the issuance (not
the delivery of the patents for the
lands.* But as irregularities were
charged i'm some instances, and in 9TH
ers the parties to whom the lands were
cold had not called for their patents, a
confirmatory act was passed in 1873,
which the Interior Department accept
ed az forever settling the titles to these
lands SO far as the United States was
concerned, and in accordance Herewith
the following instructions were issued
Tn the various u. S. Land Offices:
DEPARTMENT OF INTERIOR.
GENERAL LAND OFFICE,
April 25th, 1873.
Gentlemen: send for your information
the annexed copy of an act of Congress. en-
titled Gan Act to Confirm Certain Entries of
Land Therein Mentioned" approved Feb'y
18th, 1873.