Seattle daily post-intelligencer. [volume] (Seattle, W.T. [Wash.]) 1881-1888, 1885-11-01

I Wells Walk JonynsI

his Office has received. with conpii.
Dents OF the author. W. W. Chspuna 40,
Very able brief n the case Of The
northern Pacific Railroad Compsuy Va
> I. Sesn0ns ct al, before the Secre-
tary OF the Interior The decision in
this czse will affect every settler resid-
lng within the withdraw for the Co
lumoia river grant 20 the Northern
facin'. Ibe position taken IN the
orief - that the withdrawal for the
Columbia RIVER grant vas without al
toorlty OF Law. and II the case u de
cided 10 accordance With the admirable
reasoning aud ansnsxerable citations
OF Department rulings and Supreme
Court decisions. IL will have the effect TO
Immediately aushoFIze settlers within
taAt srant 10 take steps 10 obtain G. yv-
erument title 20 their lands Inssu uch
As The southern part o. this county AID
tue whole OF DD9tiiia coaHiy l. vitality
interested IN this matter. synopsis 81
tee points male IL the brief IA here
given.
The brief is fled in response 30 the
Invitation Of the Interior Department
Septs nbSr 2, 1855. for oral OF written
argument upon the proposition whether
s1y night under the z ant to the North
ern faeific attached upon the filing Of a
map OF general route. Under Supreme
Coart decisions the granting Act es,ao-
il.hed only beneficial int rest Ia an
other case the court says III hdraxal
IN advance of actual location retards
settlement. The granting act to the
Northern Paeitic only becomes opera
tive whenever "the said road is def
niiely fixed and a plat thereof filed in
tue office of the G muissiooer Of the
General Land Ohee.r Nowhere in the
act IS there any provision for dlino a
map of general route; yet a plant In
terror Department, without authority of
law. hes permitted such filing, and upon
Il has kept the public lands out of mar.
ket for fifteen years, which practice has
operated, as the Supreme Court pre-
dicted, 10 retardine settlement. This
Depal tment tas made a special act su-
perior TO the general homestead and
pre- emption laws. which the Interior
Department has asssmed to suspend
without authority of Law. The Interior
Dspar'me@i, IN setting aside acts of
Congress, is a familiar disqualification
OF the tail wagRing the dog.
In all Joint resolutions and subs quent
Z o,
provision Is made that they shall not
become imperative until final loca-
ton" In no place is there any provi-
SION for obstructing the operation of the
homestead and pre- symptom laws; Yet
the Interior Department has assumed to
sus. end the operation of these laws
upon the filing of map of general
route down the Columbia river. The
position Is inoontrovertible, that the
fling OF a map of general route down
the Columbia does no. operate to with
draw any lands along that route. and
1t requires no declaration of forfeiture
To restore these lands to the full opera.
ton of the homestead and pre-emption
laws. These laws are operative now
within that strip. and. if any man Offers
to file on land therein, and will carry
his case TO the department. he will GER
taInly get government title to bis land
In case cited, the Supreme Court
says: Public officers cannot bind the
government beyond the scope of the
lawful authority" The unlawful prac-
tices Of the Interior Department, while
they have had the effect of ret ardlng
settlement, have not affected the title to
a foot Of land along the Columbia river
Withdrawal in favor Of the Northern
Pacific. The Conclusion is irresistlb Q
that the grant alta ,hes only when tie
files nap OF definite lNca-
ton, aud that, upon the completion and
of a section of road, the
cempauy is entitled to patent for Il Q
Gnencumbered odd sections. 1t should
be borne IN mind that many Of these
were made after the time
liked in the granting act for the CON-
pletion of the road. The Assumption
Of legislative authority by the Ixteri, r
in revivlna a lapsed land
grant, 10 n most sh smeless invasion If
the liberties of free people. The de-
feet was one that could be cured only
by the Law msking power, and tie
Northern Pacific authorities laoored
earnestly for IA extension Of tine
from Congress. Why, as late as Nov.
p, 1884, Acting Comm ssioner Harris. n
instructed the Olympia land office o
withdraw for the Northern Pacific lane q
from Tacoma so miles along what o
known as the Puysilnp coal road.
Bot there - another point In th s
business that has escaped gen
sral at eution. The granting act pro-
vides that the company may take 20
miles on each side of its road IN States
and 40 miles in Territories. Where the
road was IN Territory, and the grant
lapped over into State, toe Interior
first held that the company
was entitled to Gully 70 miles; but thi,
was not Satisfactory to the corpor alto
IN aste's, and the ruling was changed so
as to give the railroads 10 miles where
the road was ia a Territory aud the
grant iapped over into a State. There
must be a return to ths former ruiing
Of the Department in this matter.
Under this railing. the Northern Pacific
cannot take foot of land in Umati.la
county for the grant of its Cascade
Branch. IL can go 40 miles in Terri
tory. bat when a grant laps ihto State,
il must stop when 20 miles are reached
from its main line Oar Umatilla ooun-
ty friends must insist tina. the mars
constructed by former corporation
ruled Department. showing a limit 40
miles from the Cascade Branch into
their county must be cut down to 20
miles wherever it touches the State of
Oregon.