Kimball enterprise. (Kimball, Brule County, Dakota [S.D.]) 188?-1883, 1883-04-27
DAKOTA NEWS NOTES.
NORTHERN PACIFIC LAND.
A Very Important Case Now Awaiting
the Decision of the Interior Depart.

VI
the Decision of the Interior Depnrt.
Kent.
WASHINGTON, Special Telegram, April is
Secretary Teller is now engaged Oh u very i'm
portant decision affecting the interests of a large
number of settlers along the line Of the North
ern Pacific Railroad company, as we'll as those
of the company. Important legal questions
relative to tue company's grant are involved.
and were argued before the secretary several
days ngo by Roscoe Conkling in the interest of
the company. Mr.. Reddington, a land office
attorney hero, who has a large number of eli
ents along the line of the railroad, in a CONVEX
sation with your correspondent to-day. thus
trccinctly explains the questions to be settlol
~ the secretary's decision.
Tho original grant to the Northern Pacific Rail-
road company was for twenty miles in the States
ana forty miles in the Territories, with an indemni-
" limit of ten miles additional in both States and
territories. Afterwards there was another grant
of additional ten miles indemnity limit. In Is72
na,question arose in the interior department whether
the. granting act was not in itself a legis!ntive
withdrawal of all lands within the granting limits
taking effect Immediately upon the filing of the
map OF the general route. Secretary Delano held
operated as a legislative withdrawal of the granted
limits. but this decision did not affect the indem-
nifty limits, under either of the acts. An executive
withdrawal, however, was made on the States and
Territories of the indemnity limits not covered by
the legislative withdrawal under the act. Three
questions now arise:
First--Where the act itself operated as a lcuislo-
tive withdrawal of lands within the indemnity
limits.
Secoud-Whether the executive withdrawal of
the indemnity limits were authorized by law, and If
not authorized by law whether the land should be
restored.
Fifth-Whether there is any powerin the score
tary of the interior to now withdraw any of the
lands within the indemnity limit.
Mr.. RcddlnSton says tnat thousands of poo
pie are interested in tho forthcoming decision.
and that he Is in receipt every day of a large
number of letters Of inquiry regarding it. The
grant was an immense one, and, although there
were a great many settlements within the in
demnify limits, still the fact that the decision
of the secretary of the interior in 1872 held
that those lands were withdrawn by Legislative
action operated 20 keep people off the lands.
Thousands are NV waiting to take them if
they are thrown open. Mr.. I%eddingion is of
the opinion that, under the decision Of the sec
etary, they will be thrown open to settlement.
What is Due to Dakota NeWspa-
pcrS.
From the Cincinnati Times.
The rapid development of Dakota,
that is the wonder of the day, is more
largely due to the newspapers ofthe ter
ritory than to any other cause. A town
is scarcely mapped out before a weekly
paper is established, and a population of
a thousand souls is sometimes consid-
cred sufficient to justify the publication
of daily. So generally are the benefits
from a newspaper appreciated that
the merchants often offer a printer in
ducements by way of a bonus or sub.
scriptions for q cetain number of copies
to start a paper, and in all cases they lib
orally %patronize the printing offices
The extent to which Dakota merchants
advertise in the newspapers and by cir.
culars is astonishing. A Dakota town
whose newspaper is not literally filled
with advertisements is considered dying
or dead, and not a desirable place for ar
enterprising and energetic man to locate.
A feature of some of the Dakota pa.
pers is in the "boom" editions, which
are issued every few months,an which
being sen all over the country, and also
to Europe, have given every town in the
territory a wide reputation. 1t is not tc
be supposed that the newspaper pub
fishers are the wealthy men of Dakota
They SOW and others reap, but theirs il
a labor of love. and usually it is enough
if they are able to afford their families
comfortable living.