The Worthington advance. [volume] (Worthington, Minn.) 1874-1908, 1886-04-08

rush of applicants at the United
States land Office TO file homestead and
tree claims on railroad lands. The
local land officers refused to allow such
filings to be made, whereupon the ap-
plicants made an appeal to the COM
missioner Of the general land Office at
Washington. 1t seems that the CON-
missioner decided in one case brought
before him to approve the ruling made
by the local land officers, and an appeal
was taken to the secretary of the inte-
rior. The following letter from J. H.
Drake, land commissioner of the st.
Paul and Sioux City railroad, gives the
secretary's decision in the case:
ST: PAUL, Mimi, April S, 1885,
Editor Advance, Dear Sir: The fol-
our attorneys in Washington, Messrs.
Curtis s. Burdett:
Drake, EsS, St. Paul, Minn % Dear sir: We take
pleasure in informing you that on the 9th ult.
the secretary decideS i1 in favor q the company
WELL Tracy, Minn., involving the south half of
the northeast quarter OF section q, township III
range =. and the northeast quarter Of section 25
as the land had been certified to the road the
department. has no further jurisdiction over
them, and therefore DECLINES to consider the ap-
specially, CURTIS & BURDETr.
The principle involved is the same
upon every piece of land tree-claimed
or homesteaded during the wild excite
ment Of last autumn. This is &C.
affirmation of previous decisions to the
same effect, and is specifically applica-
bic to our grant J. II. DRAKE,
Land Commissioned.
Further movements in the case will
be awaited with interest. 1t is under
stood that an appeal can be taken to
the courts, but whether the defeated
parties will do this, now that their
ardor has had time to cool, remains to
be seen. Whatever is done should be
done quickly, so as to have the matter
settled as soon as possible. The AID
VANCE has contended all the while that
it was a waste of time and money to
try to wrest this land from the railroad
company, but there was an epidemic
that had to run its course before a
healthy condition of affairs could lie
reached, and everybody will feel re-
lieved when it is finally settled.
There is one thing that laboring men
frequently do that Injuries their cause
very much An instance Of this has
recently occurred at Mankato. Stone
cutters there who have been working
for $3.50 il day have made a demand
for 81 Il day. When men who are
working for G5 cents day make de.
mand tor better wages, they at once
obtain the sympathy of farmers and
wage earners all over the country; but
when men are already receiving better
wages than the great mass of laboring
men and farmers, they need not ex-
pect Il particle Of sympathy or assist
ance in getting an increase. Such de-
mands only furnish an excuse to EN-
ployers to refuse all requests for the
betterment of the condition of en-
ployes. They say, and such demands
apparently justify them in it, that mo
matter how much we pay, laboring
men are never satisfied; so what is the
use of trying to satisfy them; we might
AS we'll resist such demands first as
last" Then, too, when one is endeav-
orlng to work for the elevation of the
laboring class and to secure better
wages, the employers point to the
good wages paid to a few and argue
that labor is paid enough already ard
that for employers to pay more would
be to bankrupt themselves Laborers
had better unite in raising the wages
of those getting less than $3.50 day
to that figure before they make any
demands to increase the wages of
those already getting that rate or
more.