Fort Worth daily gazette. (Fort Worth, Tex.) 1882-1891, 1886-09-12

scnVoi lanu,for the term Of five wears sinh.
lect 70 any obligation Of Tsrrant County
neretofore made for county seat purnoses
OF railway right Of way ana grounds.
should either be located on said lands I ~
nave any damages TO the leesehold inter.
est awarded for such right of way. for
which will pay yearly rental Of Ssolo
70 De paid annually In advance, reseryinS
tne right TO remove any and all improve.
ments that may see proper TO make
should the county seat be located on
the land then reduction In the
rental is to be made In the same pro.
portion as the land taken for such pur.
poses Is to the whole tract. Signed,
5. b. BURNETT.
February IL, 1888.
~ Is considered and ordered by the
court that said proposition OF said s. n
burnett to lease said Tarrant county
scnooi land be and the same is hereby re.
ceived and accepted, and is hereby made
and entered into by this court, for and on
oeDsi OF Tarrant county with said s. b.
Burnett, for the lease OF Tarrant county
school land for the term OF dive wears
from this date, tqerya 4 - nsSS'',s
In making this contract the commits.
sioners, with all the lights before them at
tnst time, did the very best that could
POSSIBLY have been done for the county.
| wichita was AZ that time an extreme
frontier county, with no apparent pros
pect OF early settlement and no market
Tor lands. To have placed our school
lands upon the market at that time would
have been extreme folly, as no purchasers
other than spectators could have been
found, and it was far better TO nave an
income OF 5000 per annum from the
lands than for them TO be Welding
nothing, as had been the case during the
preceding twenty-six years, during which
the county has owned them.
Now, however, things have greatly
changed. Last year the Fort Worth (
Denver City railway was extended
through Wichita county, aud was built
directly through our school land. This
road has carried with 1t heavy tide of
immigration, and large numbers are
now and have been seeking homes on It's
line and In proximity to its depots. Aud
would here remark that the commits
sioners have bound the company to es.
tablish and maintain depot on our land,
and at point not far from It's center.
Last fall Col. Frost, the superintendent
of the Fort Worth & Denver City Railway
company, called 20 see me at my resi-
dence when was sick In bed, TO urge
the placing OF settlers upon the lands.
There was an offer by gentleman rem
| resenting a colony from Ohio to take six
sections at 5000 per acre, and numerous
letters were received making in
quiries as to the terms on which
| the lands could be purchased.
4 n III on
necessarily rejected, and to all such in
quiries the answer had to he returned
that the lands were under lease and could
not be sold, was anxious to inaugur.
ate the settlement of the land, for | was
and still am of the opinion that by selling
OFF the land in small quantities to actual
settlers on long time, with the interest
payable annually, but year or two at
most would elapse before we would have
an income three or four times that Yielded
by the lease, and still have land left by
which we could take advantage Of rises
in value brought about by the develop.
ment of those portions earliest sold. II
was for the purpose OF preparing the way
to carry out my policy as above Indicated
that | voted as did upon the cancellation
OF the Burnett lease.
| ] shall now state how the final settle.
ment with Mr.. Burnett came about. Wher
| went into Office in 1884 found that my
predecessor had collected the lease
money for two years, which brought
1t up to February IA, 1885. When
called upon Mr., Burnett's agent
In 1885 for the rent for the year ending
February IA, 1886, he declined to pay,
stating that Mr.. Burnett claimed dam.
ages from the county for injury to his
lease-hold interest, occasioned by the
building of the railroad through the land.
Referring me TO the provision in the orig
inal contract providing that he should
have damages occasioned to his lease
hold interest by the building of the rail.
road through the land, / did not feel
authorized to institute suit. | thought
1t better TO have the matter settled out Of
court If possible; for, from my expert
ence, both at the bar and upon the bench
believe that 1t is always best TO exhaust
all possible means OF settlement before
engaging in lawsuit. | referred the
matter to the commissioners and made
repeated efforts to to get Mr.. Burnett be
fore them. Finally, after numerous con
situations and much discussion, the nna
settlement with Mr.. Burnett was made
The terms of this settlement are con
tanned in the proceedings of the com
missioners' court, to be found on pages
452 and 453 in minute book No. 4, anC
are in words and figures as follows:
COMMISSIONERS COURT, SPECIAL TERM,
JUNE, 1856.
FRIDAY, June is, Iss6.--Court met pur
suant TO adjournment present as on yes
terday, with the addition Of Hon. San
Furman, county judge, presiding.
Tarrant county school land-On this
day came on TO be heard the proposition
Of S. Is. Burnett for the settlement Of The
differences between him and Tarrani
county in reference TO the case Of the Tar
rant county school land, said proposition
being In words and figures as follows
! to-witi
To the commissioners Court Of Tar
rant County; AS compromise and set
Element Of our differences concerning the
Tarrant county school lands In Wicbita
county, propose 10 pay the county the
sum Of twenty-nlne hundred and twelve
dollars (s29l2), cash in full Of all liabili.
ty on nv said lease, contract made on the
llth day Of February, 1885, and surrender
the said lands 70 the county at once, and
the said lease TO be cancel ed and hereafter