Fort Worth daily gazette. (Fort Worth, Tex.) 1882-1891, 1886-09-12
FACTS FROM FURMAN.
Inc County Judge Of Tarrant Makes
Dignifed and Salts.
factory Reply
40 an Anonymous scribbisr-rhe True
Inwardness OF the school
Land Lease.

My attention has Of late repeatedly
been called to the fact that an erroneous
impression existed in the minds OF many
OF our people with reference TO the can.
collation. Of a certain lease contract
upon the Tarrant county school lands
between Tarrant county and Mr.. S. r.
Burnett. | have been requested by a
number Of friends to make known INV
reasons for voting in favor of the can.
collation. Of Mr.. Burnett's lease. Recoo.
niziDg the fact that as an officer of Tar.
rant county, am but the agent aud serv.
ant OF the people, | am ready aud willing
at all times to render to the people an
account OF what l have done for them
ana 70 give my reasons for my every of.
! fetal act.
My delay in giving publication to q
statement OF this entire business has
Deen caused by the fact that was in.
formed some time since that an anony.
NOUS paper, containing statements upon
the subject, was being circulated In re.
mote portion OF the county, and wished
TO ascertain the exact contents OF that
paper so that my publication might con
tain an answer thereto. The anonymous
circular referred to has been procured BIZ q
friend OF mine and is in my hands. |
shall now reproduce the aforementioned
circular, call attention to such erroneous
statements therein contained as may be
material, quote in full from the minutes
OF the commissioners court OF Tarrant
county all orders relative to the lease OF
the Tarant county school land and the
cancellation Of said lease, giving my
reasons, so far as time and space will
permit, for voting in favor Of the cancel.
lation OF Mr.. Burnett's lease upon the
Tarrant county school land.
The circular in question is in words as
follows
"Tarrent county owned certain school
land In Wilharger county and leased the
same to Messrs, Logged and his son-in-law,
Burnett, the lease to expire two years from
the LIST of January, 1856. In other words,
the lease had two years to run. The con
tract was that the rent was to be paid In
advance, viz: the lst of January OF each
year. Logged & Burnett employed Mr..
w. 5, Pendleton to 60 before the com
missioners' court and get a release from
their lease contract. The vote to cancel
the contract was tie, thereby leaving
the whole matter to Sam Furman, who
cast the determining vote in favor OF
Logged and Burnett. By this vote, Tar
rent county lost the Sl100 that was due
and ought to have been paid the LIST of
January, 1856, and the further sum of
$4,000 that would have to be paid in the
event the contract had not been cancelled.
The aggregate amount lost to the chill
dren OF this county is between $4,000 and
$4,000. This release was made without
authority of law, and at q time when it is
impossible TO lease to anyone else. They
also permitted Logged & Burnett to take
of their fencing and posts"
This extraordinary literary production
is on half-sheet of legal cap paper,
printed with type writer, in purple ink.
1t is addressed to no one and has no sig
nature. 1t was being exhibited to those
who were thought most likely to be In
fiuenced by the statement which 1t con-
tains; but was carefully kept out OF the
way Of all who were known to be friends
of mine, until one OF them succeeded In
capturing it. My business is not to criti-
oize its statements or abuse its author,
but simply to give the people the exact
truth upon the matters mentioned.
BY a comparison Of this document with
the minutes of the commissioners court
as hereinafter given, many errors upon
immaterial points in the former will be
readily discovered. | shall notice only
those mistakes which consider material
to proper understanding of the action OF
the commissioners court. 1t is charged
that by the release Of Mr.. Burnett's con-
tract the children Of Tarrant county lost
between $4,000 and $500. AS VIII be
more fully shown hereinafter, Mr.. Bur.
nett paid to Tarrant county the sum OF
! S2912, that being the contract price up 10
the date Of the surrender of the land 70
| the county, with per cent. interest
thereon from the date on which deferred
payments were due. II Is alleged as q
matter of censure that "Loyed and Burnett
were permitted to take of their fencing
and posts" BY reference TO the contracl
of lease made with Mr.. Burnett In Febru
ary, 1888, it will be seen that one OF the
express terms Of the contract WAS that be
| (Burnett) should have the right to re-
move from the land any improvements
which he might place upon il.
shall now give brief history OF the
whole matter as shown by the records OF
the commissioners court and papers or
file in the office of the county clerk. In
order, however, to render these proceed
ipgs more ineligible TO those who are
not familiar with the eaIly history OF ouI
state / shall make a statement as TO tht
manner, acquisition and history OF the
lands, which are the subject Of so much
earnest and well-merited discussion IL
Tarrant county at this time
In the early days Of Texas a law wal
passed donating 10 each organized county
in the state, out Of the public domain
four leagues OF land TO assist In main
tanning its public free schools. UDde
this law there wss patented to Tarran
county by the state Of TeKes on the ST
day Of August, 1857, q tract OF foul
leagues amounting to l7,Tl2 acres ofland
This land is one body, situated neal
the center of Wichita county. Their
were two ways In which it could be made
IN Weld a revenue for school purposes
one was To sell II and use the Interest o
the purchase money to assist In main
tanning public schools another was V
Lease il. and apply the proceeds OF lhe
lease for such purpose. Until WITHIN tnt
10 AZ few wears no revenue at all was eyel
derived from this source. Prior 10 tn'
building OF the railroad there, coul'
mot nave been sold excepting 70 speculs
TORS al mere nominal price. When al
Inc west and northwest offered her graz
inc 10 the whole world II was Jolly Y
teik OF leasing. Finally with the grown
m the cattle interest Of the west, ana .!
the increasing agricultural development
~ tie settled counties, the stockmei
were driven 10 the front, II became pos
.tbia for Tarrsut county 70 lease ne