The Indiana State sentinel. [volume] (Indianapolis) 1868-1895, 1885-02-25
SENATOR HARRISON AND THE LAND
GRANT.

GRANT.
Senator Benjamin Harrison, OF Indiana,
cast vote a week ago to-day which chsl-
lenges the condemnation of his constituency,
regardless of party. 1t was to lay aside and,
so, practically to Kill the bill for the forfeit
ure of the Texas Pacific Railroad land grant.
II will occur to the logical reader to ques-
zion how, since there is no Texas Pacific
Railroad, can there be a Texas Pacific land
grant? There is no Texas Pacific Road or
Company, and yet there is a Texas Pacific
Railroad land grant of IA 800, go acres. Why
this should be so only Republican United
States Senate seems to know, and our Sena-
tor Harrison appears to be conspicuous in
that outrageous knowledge.
Briefly, this is the situation:
On March 81, 1871, a grant was made to
the Texas Pacific Railway Company of a.
3O9, go acres of public lands, twenty alter
nate sections on each side Of the proposed
road being allowed per mile, with the right
to the company of making up deficiencies
ten miles beyond these limits in certain ter.
ritory, while in other territory no limit was
prescribed. In California the company
miles of the granted lands.
Not stroke of work has ever been done to
earn this grant, but, notwithstanding, it is
held for the company by the Interior De-
partment. Not only the IA, 309 760 acres en-
braced in this grant are thus Withdrawn, but
as the Interior Department can not tell
which is railroad and which is public land
until the grant has been selected and sur
veyed, all the Government land within the
limit of the grant is also practically with
drawn; and as a consequence of the refusal
Of the Senate to declare the grant forfeited
the public is denied the right to settle upon
about 40, 600, 600 acres of the public domain.
The Southern Pacific Railroad, Compel
itor of the Texas Pacific at the outset, is built
along the line which the Texas Pacific pro.
jected. The Southern Pacific was built
without any land grant and in opposition
to the Texas Pacific. 1t was the boast of the
Southern Pacific men-the Huntington gang
when appealing to Congress for charter
and right of way, that they asked for no
grant OF public lanjs. They employed
agents and attorneys to go into various
States and with this argument in their favor
as against the Texas Pacific, to influence
legislature to memorializs Congress that it
cede charter and right of way privileges to
the Southern Pacific Company. Not only
this, but it was further held that the Texas
grant had already passed. 1t was by such
claims of independence for itself and by
thus discrediting the Texas Pacific Company
that the Southern Pacific secured its desired
privileges and completed its construction,
/ But later the Huntington ring received
pretended assignment from the Texas Pacific
when, presto, change it sets up the PROPOSE
ton that the Texas Pacific grant had never
lapsed, and that by virtue of the transfer the
Southern Pacific was entitled to the Texas
Pacific land grant. So the Texas Pacific
transfers Il. 309, go acres, not an acre of
which had it earned under the terms Of the
grant, to the Southern Pacific, which had
/ bargained with the Government that it de-
sired no grant. The transfer, therefore, is,
ab initio, void, Just as entirely so as if the
/ Indianapolis Street Railway Company had
made il. The Southern Pacific has no more
title to the lands under it than IL the trans
fer had come from q corporation of ghosts.
There isn't backwoods Justice Court in
Indiana that would not throw out a claim
so absurd as that of the Southern Pacific in
the premises. Yet here is the United States
/ Senate, and an Indiana Senator active
/ in the scheme, virtually sustaining the
claim, which is nothing less than an attempt
to rob the Government of more than 14,OOO,-
600 acres of the public domain. What do
/ the people of Indiana think of Senator Har-
rison's attitude in the matter?