Mineral Point tribune. (Mineral Point, Wis.) 1869-1938, 1884-01-31
OUR PUBLIC DOMAIN.

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Lively Fight in the House-The Texas
Pacific Grants and its History.
Washington Letter to the Chicago Tribune
Thank God, the people will at last
get their rights said a fervent old
gentleman in the House to-day. His
exclamation was occasioned by the
action of the House to-day in getting
some of the lands back that have been
gobbled by the railroad monopolies
during the last dozen or so years. A
lively fight was precipitatod over the
question by the introduction by Hol-
man, of a resolution instructing the
Committee on Public Lands to report
any land-grant cases at any time.
Under the present rules of the House
the Committee on Public Lands, not
being able to report to-day, would be
shut out for another month or two
months. This resolution was offered
in order to permit an early report
During the debate which followed.
Mr.. Cobb, OF the Committee on Public
Lands, said, while the resolution con.
templated hurrying them, they had
been hard at work since the beginning
of the session, and had one report
nearly prepared, involving a. 600, 600
acres of public land. This is under
stood to be the Texas Pacific land
grant. 1t was a very significant de-
bate which followed the introduction
of the Holman resolution. There was
such squirting as is rarely seen in
the House, but it finally passed.
The resolution thus passed is one of
the most important on this vital sub
ject proposed in many years. If the
public lands committee and commits
sioner of the land Office do their duty
as directed by the resolution very inn
portant and necessary reforms in the
management of the public lands will
be adopted by the house, and will
probably become laws at the session.
A RECENTLY MADE STATEMENT
of the land grant business now before
the committee gives the various grants
as they stand on the books of the
committee, and processes to state the
amounts earned by the corporations
by fulfllment of conditions, and the
amounts forfeitabe for non-fultll-
ment, as follows:
Texas Pacific ~ Grant, 14,309, 700
acres miles of road built, none; land
earned, none forieitable, all
Oregon Central Grant 3.701, 200
acres; miles of road built, 1877; land
earned, 1900, 600 acres; forfeitable,
1901, zoo acres.
Ontonogan and state ine-Grant,
232, 900 acres; miles of road construct
ed, 90 land earned, none; forfcita-
BILE, all.
California and Oregon and Oregon
and California; Grant, 2, 1876, 526 miles
of road constructed, 1877; land earned,
1,454, 600 acres; forfeitable, 661, 926
acres.
Northern Pacific-Grant, As, 215, 040
acres miles of road constructed at
twenty sections per mile, 22S; at forty
sections per mile, 1877 miles; land
earned, 1865, 200 acres; forfeitable,
81, 539, $40 acres.
Atlantic and Pacifc-Grant, 40,
500 $50 acres miles of road con
structed at twenty sections per mile,
SO; at forty sections, 36 miles; land
earned, 2,6G0 800; forfeitable, IS, O29,
760 acres.
Southern Pacific of California
Grant, 5,511, 264 acres; miles of road
constructed, 231 land earned, 2,440,-
$50 acres; forleitable, 2,613, 40.
New Orleans Pacific-Grantr report
ed at 903,218 acres, but found to CON
tain about $500, 600 acres; miles of
road constructed, none; land earned,
none; forfeitable, all.
Atlanta, Gulf and West India
Transit-Grant, /, III 200 acres miles
of road constructed 1856; land earned,
600 600 acres; forfeitable, 81 200
acres.
Pensacola and Georgia Grant l.,
IFS, $50 acres no road constructed;
no lands earned; all forfeited.
Florida, Atlantic and Gulf-Grant,
226 $50 acres; no road constructed no
lands earned all forfeited.
Mobile and Girard-Grant, S5S, 644
acres no road constructed; no land
earned; all forfeited.
Selma, Rome and Dalton-Grant,
641, PSI acres; miles of road construct
ed; 100; land earned, 400, 600 acres
foIfeitable, 24l, PSI acres.
Vicksburg Shreveport and Texas
Grant, 725, 700 acres; miles of road
constructed. "a; land earned. 800, 600
acres forfeitable, 1866, 760 acres.
Sioux City and St. Paul-Grant,
49,, Z4O acres; miles OF ROAD construct
ed, Sc; lands earned. 31G, zoo acres;
forfeitable, 10, $40 acres.
There are 121, 600, 600 acres Of land
granted-2l, 600, 600 acres earned and
100, 600, 600 acres forfeitable.'
THE TEXAS PACIFIC LAND GRANT.
The Texas Pacific Land Grant,
which it is thought certain Chairman
Cobb meant to-day. in the omen dis
cusson, has a history IL is this grant
that G. p. Huntington who wrote
this letter to Cotton is trying to get
He had the audacity to appear before
this committee on public lands the
other day and argue the case with
them THE etfrontery of Q. p. Hunt
ington in coming before our commit
tee to protest against the forfeiture of
the Texas PACIFIC grant amazed me,
said Chairman Cobb.