Arizona weekly enterprise., 1888-03-10
TIE people of Phenix held rousing

TIE people of Phenix held rousing mass meeting on Friday night of last week, for the purpose of discussing the Jill now before Congress which proposes to settle private land grants in Arizona, New Mexico and Colorado. The meas ure was denounced as unwise and un- just to the people affected by these grants and the following resolutions were unan- imously adopted as expressing the sen timents of the people of Salt River val ley:
 "WHEREAs. There has been introduced into the Senate and House of Represen- tatives bills to create a commission fer settlement of the Spanish grants in Ari- zona, New Mexico and Colorado. And WHEREAS: The intent of these bills is to transfer the adjudication of such claims from the political to tho judicial arm of the Government, and
 WHEREAS: We regard the introduction of these bills as an attempt to create commission similar to that which in early days opened wide the doors for fraud and rascality in the settlement of Spanish grants in California. And
 WHEREAS, the prosperity of Arizona is bound up in the honest settlement of the land grants situated therein. almost all of which are fraudulent and which cover in the aggregate about ten millions of acres of the best and most productive land on the continent on which are erected millions of dollars of improve ment. Therefore
 RESOLVED, By the citizens of the Salt River valley, Arizona, in mass meeting assembled, that the passage by Congress of either of the bills now pending before it is a menace to their prosperity, in as much as it opens the door for litigation which generation will not see settledi that we have bought our lands from the Government, entered upon and improved the same in the knowledge and belief that the political, and not the judicia arm of tho government had the power to adjudicate the rights of claimants un der Spanish or Mexican land grants, anc that any attempt to transfer such powel to commission would be unwise, unjus and impolitic; that claimants under Span ish land grants have all the protection required in presenting their claims to thu land Department, and in the final con firmation by Congress if their grants ar valid; and that we, people directly in terested to the extent of our homes an, possessions, are willing to trust to tn honesty, fairness and justice of Repre- sentatives of the Nation to deal equitabl as between settler and claimant in tn settlement of land titles in this Terri tory, A,.d that as eitizsN Is of the Unite States without direct voice in it's gov ernment, we earnestly protest agains the passage of any Act, changing an manner the law as it exists at present.
 RESOLVED, That copy of these reso lutions be teleVraphed by the chairma of this meeting to the speaker of tn House of Representatives and the Pres dent of the Senate of the United State to be laid before their respective bodies &the expression of the wishes and d, sires of the people of Maricopa count1 whose every material interest is boun up in the proper solution of this Ian question" ."
 RESOLVED, That the Chairman an Secretary of this meeting send copy the resolutions adopted to our Delega in Congress, Marcus A. Smith, and T quest him to use his influence to defe any and all bills creating land commi sion for the settlement of land grants.