San Antonio daily light. [volume] (San Antonio, Tex.) 1886-1907, 1886-06-15
COUNCIL MEETING.
MACKEY AND THE HEAD OF THE
RIVER AGAIN.
The Meeting Cut Short to See the Engine
Test Important Sanitation Indeh-
nitely Postponed.


Test Important Sanitation Indeh-
nitely Postponed.
The full board Of aldermen were present at
the council meeting yesterday, and n Mayor
Callaghau WIS i'll with his eyes, the aldermen
run the machine themselves, mayor pro ten.
Schreincr occupying the mayors cnalr.
After the minutes of last meeting were read
and corrected, petitions and memorials came
up, and were disposed Of as follows:
Mrs. Lizzie Smith. for an iron clad building
on st. Mays street; fire committee.
Citizens, for one of the old fire bells in the
Fourth ward; fire committee.
Mayor Of Kansas City. for financial as slst-
ancC to fight the patent on hrcmcns swinging
harness: fire committee
Carmen Coy, for II monthly allowance; alder
men OF the ward and city physician.
W. X. story for reduction OF assessment;
assessment committee.
c. ". THndy, asking the prices of certain
out lots belonging to the city; finance COM
Inittcc.
Citizens on south Flores street, for two
sprinking stand pipes, one at the United
States arsenal and one at the school house;
gas and water committee.
Citizens of Prospect hill, asking that the
practice of dcpOslting nth in that ncighbOr-
hODd be discontinued rs nuisance, and for a
di,ch to carry of stagnant water on Buena
Vista and NaVdad streets.
Gallagher said the neOplC there had good
cause for complaint, and also declared that
resolution had been passed In February To pre-
vent me deposit OF RdFodEc "it"i" '"O ini'o
Of the city
Passed for the present.
REPORTS OF OFFICERS.
The city attorney submitted a report on the
deed from Fred Cooke, giving a strip OF land
70 feet wide for a street between Garden and
Pre.a streets Referred to the mayor.
The board Of health reported in favor of
CrematOFics for burning garbage and dead
animals, aud the barrel s. stem of sewers for
the hospital. Adopted.
Engineer, that the grade on King william
street has been given. Filed.
Engineer, recommending that SI5 be apprO-
pratcd - put II hand rail on the Olive street
bridge and widen the approaches. Adopted
Engineer, submitting plans tor the hospital
fence to cost SlltD or 70 cents per foot Deg
cuer moved 10 advertise for bids. Adopted
The cn9iuccr reported that the obstruction
in the alley between Blum and East Commerce
street consisted OF fence belonging to Gal
mghCr-thc fence projecting II feet across the
ditch. The mayor was authorized TO have the
irnC" removed.
Captain C. p. Smith, the eX-city engineer,
sent in communication, regarding the sur
vey a. the White property on West Commerce
street He declined to attend the council, as
gested that the present engineer be called on
to say why he had displaced the Old established
lines and thereby caused so much trouble and
expense Filed.
The report of the market master for May was
referred Ia the market committee.
The city attorney submitted tine following
head of the river, as called for in resolution
10y MackCy:
SAN ANTONIO, June "A, 1886
Hon. Bryan Csllaghan Mayor, and Board of
Aldermen:
GENTLEMEN.-In response to the attached
resolution, introduced before your honorable
body by Alderman Mackey, requesting my
opinion AS to the proper construction TO be
given to the field notes mentioned therein, !
most respectfully report:
The rule, that where the descriptive calls
IN II deed definite and certain, and capable
of Identification, they control both course and
distance" has received such universal sane
tiOn as to have no room to doubt its correct
ness.
The rule is thus stated by Chief Jvstice Mar
shall in the case of NewsOme VS.. Prior
Wheat ::
THE most material and certain calls shall
control those which are less material and less
certain. 4 call for natural object, as Il river,
known stream, spring, or even II marked
tree shall control both course and distance"
Our supreme court, in the case of Stafford
VS. King, 80 Texas, 2Tl," said: of all these
indcia Of TIE locality of the true lines, as run
garded As the most unreliable, and generally
distance more than course, for the reason that
chain carriers may miscOunt and report dis
tanCcs inHCCurately, by mistake or design, at
any rate they are more liable to err than the
compass. The surveyor may fall into an error
in making out the field notes both as to course
and distance the former no more than the
latter
But when the surveyor points out to the
owner rivers, creeks, marked trees and lines
on the land for the lines and corners of his
land, he has the right to rely on them ms the
best evidence of his true boundaries, for they
are not liable to change and the fluctuations
of time to accident or mistake, like calls for
course and distance, and hence the rule that
when course and distance, or either of them
conflict with natural or artificial objects
called for they must yield to such objects as
being more certain and reliable.
Consequently, when land is described by
definite and fixed boundaries the distance be-
tween the boundaries is of no Importance in
determining the location or extent of the
land.
The field notes to the property in question,
as contained in the resolution, call for the be
ginning or southwest corner, "a stake set on
the east bank of the San Antonio river" and
for the northwest corner "a stake set on the
bank Of the river, thence down the river with
its meanders to the place of beginning" the
eastern boundary being an old road running
north and south. Thus we have the property
definitely described by Il natural boundary on
the west and an old road on the east, which in
my opinion will control the call for distance
between the two boundaries, and the fact that
there is an excess in Varas over those called
for on the north and south lines cannot
change the legal effect of the descriptive calls
in the field notes. Our supreme court in a
case Simi ar To tho one submitted to me, Gal
weston county VS.. Tankersly, 80 Texas, $500
said:
There is no dispute about any portion of
the boundary, excepting on the northeast en- d
of the Galveston county survey, which fronts
on the BraZOs river.
There seems to be conflict in the calls for
this line as set out in the patent, since il calls
for the mcanders of the river and also for
courses and distances, and these do not cor
respond with each other. The calls in the
patent for the northeast boundary of the sur
vey are as follows: Beginning at the desig-
mated point and running thence up the river
with its meanders north % deg, east SO varas
south ~ deg, east 1900 varas, north 20 deg
east 1850 varas, north 30 deg, east 1920 varas
north Al deg, west POO varas, north 81 deg.
west llIO VaraS, to the northeast corner at the
mouth of Il creek. Now ii is apparent from
the evidence and admissions of the
parties that il the river be measured
for the northeast boundry of the sur
vey then the calls for the courses and dis
lance to form the same line must be aban-
dOned; and If the meanders of the river be
abandoned, and the courses and distances fol-
lowed, then there will be remaining between
the northeast boundary of the Galveston
county league and the river several tracts of
land, on which the appellees have settled.
There can be no doubt that the locator in
tended TO include all the meanderS of the
river from the southeast to the northeast cor
ners of the survey both of which extended to
the river. The intent of the location and sur
veyOr may also he gathered from the form of
the survey, which is the legal form for sur
veys fronting on navigable streams.
ave think the certain natural boundary of
the river called for I'm this patent must con
troll the evidently unknown, conflicting and
absurd calls for course and distance. II was
beyond question the intention of the grantOr
and grantee to have the patent cover the land
within the bend of the river, and to have the
boundary defined by that natural and. certain
object, and If the survey contains few more
acres of land than the patent calls for. II will
not vitiate the grant nor authorize trespassers
within its known boundary, ID. t6O."
IL the property claimed was in fact reserved
Il was due to the wisdom Of the gentlemen i'm
control of the municipal affairs at that time
who recognized in IL valuable heritage and
foresaw the future destiny of the then sparsely
populated town; IL is 10 be regretted that they
left us no dir9ct and positive evidence, by
which we can lay undenied claim to the