Fort Worth daily gazette. (Fort Worth, Tex.) 1882-1891, 1885-07-08
AUSTIN.
A Million and Quarter Acres Of School
Land Leased at the Minimum
Price Of Six Gents.
A Long squabble Over tie Three. Section
Question Many Applicants for
Single Section.

Special to the Gazette.
AUSTIN, Ten, July The land
board In session to-day leased
li2o0OOO acres OF school land,
the rolls from Tom Green county ad.
ding applications for e5O, 900 acres to
those reported last night. There was
but little competition, the bids indi.
eating tacit agreement among ap.
plicants to divide up the territory and
thus get II at the minimum price. ak
cents. The leases are chiefly In large
tracks 70 corporations and wealthy In
dividuals.
The most interesting part OF the
session was over the sales, There are
80 applications for one section ana
less, as actual settlers, and those which
were reached of this number were
quickly disposed Of but hitch oC
Cured over the competitive bids under
the new resolution authorizing the
sale OF three grazing sections To one
individual. When Hardeman county
was taken up protest was
read from citizen, declaring
that IL was as good an agricultural
county rs Williamson, from which he
hailed, aud asking that all Of its lands
be classed as agricultural and sold In
quantities OF one section only. This,
he said, would checkmate the speou.
lators and II the actual settlers we're
given an open field they would settle
up the cJuuty in short time. On
this statement the board by
vote of three to one
rejected all the bids for
three sections from Hardeman, al.
though, with one exception, they
complied with the law. Walsh,
Swain aud Templeton voted In the az,
, hrmative and Lubbock In the mega.
: tive. In three other counties the
; same action was taken. The secretary
OF the board was instructed to send the
bids back for better proof that the
!, lands are fl only for grazing purposes
but, as the bidders furnished nil tn,
! proofs REQUIRED by the original resolu
i ton, 1t is believed that the board Il
y preparing to 90 back to the one-sec
:, ton rule. Walsh and Templeton Ar,
b known to favor this plan, and II Swaii
= sticks TO the Intersection provision
the governor will be called In to breal
= the tie. Walah declared to day, In dis
= cussing this question, that havinl
!, withdrawn from the board the gov
i ernor had no right to take any furlhe
!, part in its proceedings. Several shar
l. passages occurred among the member
,, of the board, In one c
+ which Lubbock charged Tenn leto
j. with being one of the best free.graa
men he knew, and remarked again
;, when the question of law was hrough
w, that the board had been maxim
T. and unmaklng law at pleasure. Tn
L board Dleels again tomorrow, whe
K, the three-section question will be prof.
81 ably settled.
g. The penitentiary board held anothe
y meeting this evening aud consideIe
" the report OF Mr.. Binbinblne, the Phi
81 adelphia expert, in regard to the iro
furnace at Rusk. II was very favori
e, bly, received, and the suggestions I
+. regard TO the establishments of certai
) manufactures will probably be acte
D upon.
y In reply to an inquiry from the o,
ucational department the attorne,
= general ruled to-day that the dlstric
Il school trustees whose terms expire
b August, 1889, may, prior TO that tin
u and before the qualification OF the
O. successors, enter into contrat
3; with teachers for the neS
a. scholastic year ending August 3
III 1885, also that said trustees hold ov,
u until their SUCCESSORS are duly quail
n, fed.
Isi The water. works have received
u, new pumping engine, which will
ss tested tomorrow.