Washington standard. [volume] (Olympia, Wash. Territory) 1860-1921, 1885-07-24

Ter. al points We're III ~ presented
and considered-the very ones which
Commissioner Sparks tries to recon-
sider-thcn and in that case the head
of the department is bound by the
decision of his predecessor This
opinion has been recently reat1irmed
10y the Secretary of the Interior in
the case of Mansfield VS.. Northern
Pacific Railroad Company, involving
title to tract in Eastern Oregon.
1t has also been settled aid reaf-
firmed by various decisions Of the
Supreme Court of the United States.
Q.-Will you please state as pre-
cisely as possible what is the posi-
ton of the Northern Pacific Railroad
Company in this matter, and what
in your opinion will the company do
to assert what it considers its rights
and the law in the premises. A
The pc pc4ition of the company is this:
That ii grant is grant in quantity
and an entirety, Shat it il entitled to
p 900 acres of land FOX every mile
OF constructed read; tia where tiIi+
quanti,, of land canno' be found
within 'hc granted limits, it has tho
right to select lands anywhere III The
indemnity limits, no matter in what
State or Territory the losses may
have occurred; that the land within
the indemnity limits must be held in
a state of withdrawal, to the exclu-
sion of every other claim, until the
losses of the company in the granted
limits shall have been fully ascer-
tained and the company shall have
had an opportunity to make its in
demnity selections, and that il the
quantity of land in the ten mile in
demnity limits is not sufficient to in
demnify the company for its losses
suffered between the time of the
passage of the act and that of filing
the map of definite location in any
one State or Territory, the company
is entitled to go beyond the original
indemnity limits to q distance of ten
miles on either side of its line in the
respective territories and select lands
in lieu of those lost between the
dates specified. This position has
been sustained by able arguments
made, among others, by Hon. Chas.
S. Voorhees,, now Delegate to Con-
gress from Washington Territory,
when attorney of the company at
Colfax, and it has been affirmed by
the Secretaries of the Interior who
have had occasion to pass on the
points involved.
Q.-Do 1 understand you Alright
in stating that the Northern Pacific
Railroad Company has two indem-
nifty limits? A.-Yes, sir; in its
charter the Northern Pacific Railroad
Company is given the right to select
indemnity lands ten miles on either
side beyond the granted limits and
the grant being an entirety, no pro
vision is made confining the COM
pany for its indemnity to the States
and Territories in which lands are
lost. By joint resolution of May 81 /,
1870, the company was given the
right to go ten miles beyond the
original indemnity limits, but here
it is especially provided that indem-
nifty c;,n only be taken in any ono
State ,r Territory for tie losses sui
fered therein.
Q,-This does not seem 10 be gen
orally understood i'll Inc country.
A. No, sir; I am afraid it is not.
A few newspapers, in league with
land attorneys, preach he doctrine
that tie Northern Pacific Railroad
Company has no rights, and for the
purpose of promoting litigation mis-
inform their readers.
o. have seen it stated that the
indemnity selections which the
Northern Pacific Railroad Company
has made in the last two years were
illegal because the company had
failed to designate the tracts for
which it desired to take indemnity.
A Walla Walla paper of recent date
made this statement, saying the &C
ton of the company was in direct
violation of the rules and regulations
of the General Land Office. A
These statements are about as ac-
curate as the class of papers and
lawyers to which I referred generally
state anything or know anything.
1t is the object of this class to keep
the people in ignorance and prey
upon their ignorance. Under date
of May 29th, 1888, the Commissioner
of the General Land Office directed
the Register and Receiver of Walia
Walla to accept the indemnity selec
tons of the Northern Pacific Rail
road Company without requiring the
designation Of lands lost. Like in.
structions were given to every Other
land Office in Oregon and Washing
ton Territory wherever the company
presented selection lists. This order
was given for the purpose of saving