The Jasper weekly courier. [volume] (Jasper, Ind.) 1858-1922, 1885-04-10


An Infamous Act Perpetrased by the Re-
publican Party.
We are gradually getting more light
on the last act Of infamy Of the Repub-
lican party. perpetrated as il was step
ping down and out Of power The
ruling passion strong in death has had
one more dazzling and brilliant illus
tration. We refer 10 the last land steal
Of 7OO.0O0 acres of Government land
The Washington correspondents are
gradually getting nj the true inward
ness Of the big -. 900. 900 swindle. We
published dispatch last Saturday from
the Chicago Tribune. which gave ont
the impression that the matter wa All
right; quite innocent. in fact: the usual
thing expected. of course. from a party
that had piled NJ monuments 81 big and
infamous swindleS. The New York
Worid's correspondent has been looking
the affair up. and he uncoyer- some
very interesting details. Accord ny 10
this account. ii seems that several weeks
ago large additional force Of clerks
was put on for the purpose Of making
out these patents, SO that they could all
be signed and issued before the change
Of the Administration. These patents
were all signed. Thcr never has
been. in the history Of tho department..
any patents issued for lands where Con-
gress had assumed jurisdiction TO raise
the question Of the proprieiy Of the title.
This backbone grant has been one Of
the most notorious of all the isolated
grants. II was passed BY Congress in
1871. and was originally made to the
New Orleans. VicksburS i Baton Rouge
Railroad. The condition was that this
road should be completed within five
years. This company never turned over
a spoonful Of dirt. and never did any
thing beyond the issuing Of some bonds.
which were palmed of on coniiding
public.
This railroad on paper transferred the
grant 10 the New Orleans AMI Pacific
Road. and here now j. where Jay Gould
comes in. This road then sold its
charter rights TO the Texas Pacific. but
reserved the assigned grant and trans
ferred lit 1.-THE American Improvement
Company. Gould and other, owned
nearly all this stock. which was sort
Of Credit Mobilier affair. The Worlds
correspondent concludes his inve~tiga-
ton Is follows:
The Backbone grant Is upon eAacfly the
same footing the Texas Pacific. which was
forfeited by the senate the other dav. For
number Of years the people who hci1 this
backbone grant have trIc. 10 ret Congress TO
confirm H. The grant has been rejected
number Of times and no Sccrcfars ~ the In.
terror before Teller would ever consider what
was particularly proposition 70 help steal
these lands for the benefit OF the r3iilrOn1 lob
bv. Whether there l. an investigation OF this
or not. Mr.. Teller will he called upon 20 OK.
plain on the floor Of the Senate hi extranr,i
nary course in this matter. There j. not much
doubt that this Gould aud HUNTINGTON con
spracy also contemplated the theft Of the
Texas Pacific lands II II had not been for
this unearncd grant there j. reason 10 sup
issued patents for the fifteen millions Of acres
81 these lands.
This outrage was pcrrctratcd by the
last Republican Administration the day
before Cleveland ; Inauguration. 1t
was the elimination Of = giant conSpir-
acy and colossal swindle all along
the line. What an appropriate cap
stone to the monumental infamics Of
the Republican party. And they hope
to get back into power at The end OF
four years. Not if the American peo-
pie are awake. - Indiana State sentinel.