Iron County register. [volume] (Ironton, Iron County, Mo.) 1867-1965, 1882-03-30
Land Titles in Missouri.

on the subject of land titles, raised by
unprincipled men to crafty their per-
sonal malice, so that many cautious
men. not knowing just how the thing
stands, are afraid to locate i'm the State
1t is prop ,sed in this article to trace
ihe matter OF land titles through, step
by step. as clearly as possible, 50 that all
may be able to understand the matter
The United States obtained its title
to the soil of Missouri by purchase from
France in April, 1903, and it became
subject to the United States land laws.
UnCer these, when lot of land has
been sold by the Government for cash
the purchaser obtains a receipt from
the proper Land Office setting forth the
date of the sale, the loca ton of the
land and the payment of the money.
An account of the transaction is for
warded to the General Land Office at
Washington City, which, as soon as
possible, forwards to the proper Land
Office patent for the land. By pre-
senting his receipt at the office the
purchaser obtains his patent.
When a person entered land under
the Graduation or Homestead law he
paid what was demanded by the law,
and obtained his receipt, and upon
making proof before the officers of the
proper La nd Office to their satisfaction
that the conditi ms of the Graduation
or Homestead laws has been complied
with by him: upon their certificate of
this fact to the General Land Office at
Washington City, a patent issued for
the land, and upon the presentation of
his receipt at the proper Land Office the
purchaser obtains his patent.
Upon the issuing of the patent from
the General Land Office at Washing
ton City all title of the United States
to the land in question passes to the
, purchaser, and all the control of the
United States land laws over the land
ceases. and it passes under the laws of
the State.
AS the design of the law is that there
shall be no strife, so the issuing of the
patent by the Land Office at Washing
ton City concludes and determines up
on the validity and regularity of every
thing behind that fact. And in evil
dence that it does so conclude and
determine, and that the Jurisdiction
over the land has passed into the hands
of the State, the General Land Office
at Washington City sends to the State
Register of Lands at Jefferson CITY a
tabulated sta tement of all lands so dis
posed of, This statement the State
Register of Lands arranges under the
proper counties, and sends to the Coun-
ty Clerk in each county tabulated
statement, giving the numbers of the
land, the date of the entry and the
name of the person by whom the entry
was made. This statement the County
Clerk copies on his record, so that the
land can be taxed in the name of the
party making the entry.
At this point let us review to discov-
er the show fur a fraudulent patent.
Suppose a man forges patent. he cam
not reach the Land Office at Washing
ton City to make any record there,
because all information comes there
through the local land offices; he cam
not reach the office of the State Regis
ter of Lands, because the entries of
lands recognised there must he certified
from the General Land Office at Wash
ington City; he cannot reach the books
of the County Clerk, because no entry
tied by the State Register of Lands.
Suppose he places his forged patent on
the Recorders books. the books of the
County Clerk. of the local Land Office,
of the State Register of Lands, and the
General Land Office at Washington
will trap him.
There remain then but two ways in
which a fraud can get in, and one of
these is barred when the entry is made
for cash. Under the Graduation and
Homestead laws q party can take out
his first papers, and after waiting the
requisite time, procure the necessary
affidavits to the residence aud improve
ments which never existed, and so de-
CelVe tue 0lHceTs vi TIE Iocai Lano vi
flee, who cannot be supposed, and are
not required by law, to have personal
knowledge of those things. In the
meantim the patent issues from WASH
inpton. and the fact it has SO issued is
certified to Jefferson City and from
there to the Clerk Of the proper county
for taxation.
Fourquestions arise here, viz: What
"a the amount OF fraud in the case"
Who is the guilty party: Who is injur-
ed? and, What is the remedy" To the
first of these questions the answer is
the failure of residence and cuitivation;
10 the second the answer must he the
marty making the entry; to the third
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