St. Paul daily globe. [volume] (Saint Paul, Minn.) 1884-1896, 1885-06-04
VOICE OF THE PEOPLE.
Land GRANT Steals.


Your article in the GLOBE Of the goth
inst, entitled, SIS 1t a Land Steal?" can
undoubtedly be answered yes, upon general
principles; that whatever is the subject OF
theft and can be utilized by railroad cor
pOratiOn will be taken, especially land; and
what makes the theft more reprehensible,
upon conviction they refuse to return the
stolen goods, but defy not only individuals
| who may be the tue owners but state and
national government. Knowing nothing
| specially with reference to the case cited by
your article, the writer does know that a
| number of thousand acres of land in Fari-
bault county have been unlawfully seized by
| a certain railroad corporation by means
more censurable thanOutright theft. And
what is true of this county is also true of
every county from Texas to Manitoba
wherever land-grant yailroad traverses the
country. By reference to the provisions
of the various acts passed. by congress grant
ing lands to aid in the construction of rail
roads it will be found that Odd-numbered
sections, for ten miles OIL each side of the
line of road, are usually granted; that to in
demnify the company for lands that may
have been sold or otherwise disposed of,
or upon which homestead or pre-
emption right or claim may have at
tached at date OF giant or definite
location of its line of road, the limit may
be extended to twenty miles, giving a tract
of country forty miles in width from which
to take their quota OF lands.
It is fact, that prior to the various land
grant acts, settlers had advanced into the
countries through which the grants were
| afterwards located, that many of the lands
embraced in Odd-numbered sections had
| been entered under the homestead and pre-
emption laws; that during the mutations OF
the early settlers much of this land so en-
| tered was abandoned, yet the entries re-
manned of record at the land department.
Had the cancellation Of these entries by the
department been made prior to the definite
location of the line of road, they would un-
doubtedly have been subjecttO the grant, but
the facts are, that most of these entries
were Cancelled long after and generally at
the instance or by the procurement of the
companies; that when these entries were
cancelled they did not revert to the grant as
was supposed by the railroad companies,
but became public land subject to entries
by settlers.
Yet thousands of acres probably reaching
to many millions of acres OF the class re-
ferred, to haveibeen wrongfully and cOrruptly
certified to the different states through
which these lines or grants lie, and by the
state authorities without question decided
to the railroad companies. The settlers Occu-
plying these lands under new entries allowed
by the departmental a spasm OF decency
under the famous Boyd decision have
nearly all been driven off by threats of legal
proceedings, and the railroads have taken
possession and sold the same lands to other
parties. The only redress any of these set
tiers have been able to obtain for the money
payed the government for these entries was
a ruling from Commissioner Drummond
that they would receive credit for the money
and would be allowed to enter some
other lands. And now comes the supreme
court of the United States at its October
term, 1884, in long and able decision rem
dered by Justice Miller in a case appealed
by the Kansas Pacific Railroad company
from the supreme court of Kansas, wherein
the whole question of the right OF the rail-
road companies to these lands was under
consideration, and decides against the rail-
roads. The court holds that upon the can
collation. of the original entries the lands
covered thereby did not inure to the grant,
but became public lands; that the railroad
companies had no interest reversiOnery OF
otherwise, that these lands were not eX-
pressly or by implication granted. Not
withstanding this decision OF the highest
court in the land, and knowing that theil
deed to the settler conveyed nc
title, they still propose to hang on.
The facts are that the railroad
corporations for many years have run the
land department. Its various offices have
been filled with railroad clerks and en-
ployes or by persons directly or indirectly
under their control. Whenever railroad
company had grant to be adjusted it was
done as they desired, no matter how many
settlers were ruined. At every change OF
administration there would be feeble
effort at justice, but the power OF the rail
roads whenever their interest swere likely to
suffer by some ruling OF the department,
would be speedily brought to bear and the
offensive ruling modified to suit The sub
.stantial benefits of the Boyd decision (sO-
called) covering the same ground of the
recent decision of the United States SUI
preme court, was frittered away and Sc
modified by the vacillating ruling of the
department that nothing was left of the
original decision, and all at the behests OF
the railroad companies. Such has been the
corruption of the land department. at
Washington that our magnificent Inherit
ance, the public lands, are largely in the
hands OF few corporations whose control
admits of neither justice or mercy.
If Secretary Lamar can correct the
abuses OF the land department and recover
our stolen lands, he will have earned the
gratitude of the people. j. E.
Blue Earth City, May 80, 1885.