Devils Lake inter-ocean. (Devils Lake, Ramsey Co., Dakota [N.D.]) 1884-1905, 1885-12-12
DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR, !
General Land Office. I
WASHINGTON, D. c. Nov. %.

ut Devils Lake, Dakota, dated Nov. IL.
1885, III the case of James Britton, who
made presumption cash entry No. ~,
Dec. 81, 1883. N E / sec %. town 1854 II.
range ii w; and on Feb. 3, 1884, made
II E 139 for lots ! and 2 and Ell N w t
sec IS, town 1853 n, range, 66 w, and
commuted the same (sec 1901 r. 81 by
cash entry M. 669, Feb. 9, 1884
As you will see from said copy this
has been decided rs being contrary to
law.
You will in future approve no final
proof made under section 23Ol revised
statutes, unless the claimant makes af-
fidavit which will unequivOcnlly show
TINT he has never perfected M entry
under section 1853, revised statutes Of
the United States.
WILLIAM A. j. SPARKS,
Commissioner.
Since Sparks decision in the Britton
case the land Office in this city has de-
clined to accept similar pro, is.
The following Washington telegram
shows that Mr.. Sparks is inclined to
''hedge" ON some of his orders:
Commissioner Sparks gave way u little
today aud issued an order modifying his
famous edict Of last April. There was Il
ruulor abnut the department that the
general had DECIDED to issue patents
for all entries filed before he took charge
Of the Office, which would have relieved
5O,OU0 settlers IN the Northwest, but lie
did not &" so far. H. will permit the
issue of patents upon all "entries not
subject t. reasonable doubt" namely:
First-In contests where the rights of
successful patents have been established
which means that persons whose claims
have been contested and who had pre-
scented evidence to sustain their legality,
will not be deprived of the result OF their
contest.
Second-He will certify patents where
examinations have been made by the
government detectives and no fraud
found.
Third-He will certify to homestead
entries where residence, improvement
and cultivation have been made accord
ing 10 law. In other words he will issue
patents to those who have lived five
years upon their homesteads and have
made the legal i improvements and
amount of cultivation required. ALL
such cases as above described shall be
submitted to a board consisting ofAssis-
tant Commissioner Stockslager, the
chief clerk of the department and LII
Barnes, the chief law clerk.
Commenting upon this order the St.
Paul Pioneer Press savs.
Commissioner Sparks has made q SEM.
blance Of bending before the tempest of
popular wrath evoked throughout the
Northwest by his famous order o. April
2, s%uspending all patents on settlement
and improvement claims until they have
been severally examined and ascertain.
ed to be not fraudulent. He mobiles
that order so far as TO permit the issue
of patents upon all entries mot subject
to reasonable doubt" First, in contests
when the rights of successful parties
have been estahlished-an extraordinary
concession, surely Second, when ex-
aminatiOns have been made by govern
ment agents and no fraud appears-that
is to say, in about four cases y day.
Third, homestea entries, when the par
ties have complied with the five years
residence and improvement requirement
"a very small proportion of the cases
inasmuch as the great majority of home
ste'ulels prefer to commute their home-
stead entries. All the rest, that is to say.
some SO per cent OF the whole, are swept
into the limb of entries subject to reas-
enable doubt" In other words, Mr..
Sparks assumes that every entry under
the homestead, presumption or timber
culture acts, is fraudulent, unless the
contrary is proved, and his modified Or
der simply "ffirms this assumption, and
permits patents only III cases where the
contrary has heen proved. The only
difference between this and his former
order is that in that case all entries were
suspended ill examined Ivy government
agents, while now he excerpts those few
cases which have stood the test of n much
more stringent inquis,tiun. He Is Il daisy,
is this same MIR. Sparks.
A WASHINGTON LAWYERS OPINION.
National Republican.
A leading land lawyer was asked yes
terday by q Republican reporter about
the recent published decisions of Conn
missioner Sparks. of the land Office, III
which he holds that 81 person who has
perfected an entry under the pre-emp-
ton laws cannot Commute" to Use a
technical term, u homestead entry,o l, in
terms which any one can understand,
pay for the land embraced III such en-
try, instead Of acquiring title thereto by
~ continuous residence Of five years.
"The pre-emplion law now in force"
he said, twas enacted in 1S4l. The law
granting homesteads was passed May 20,
1862. and became effective Jan. /, 1863.
The presumption law had. as II little OPP
Grafton in satisfaction will demonstrate,
been in operation about twenty zone
years when the Homestead act WIS PASS
ed, and it is to he presumed that con-
gress knew all about it. Still, when en-
acting the homestead law, it does not D
pear that that body considered it the
wise and proper ,hing to exclude from
its benefits persons who had exercised
the right of pre-emption. The only per.
sons prohibited from acquiring title to
lands under the homestead act are
aliens, married women, and persons un-
der the age of twenty-one years not
heads of families.
"The eighth section Of the homestead
act of 1862, ~re-enncted in section 23Ol Of
the revised statutes of the United States,
provided that "nothing in this chapter
shall he so construed ~ to W. Any