Fort Worth daily gazette. (Fort Worth, Tex.) 1882-1891, 1889-02-07
PUBLIC DOMAIN.
Spanish and Mexican Government. Re-
public and State of Texas Grants.
About Three Million Acres of Unappropriated
Public Domain Lying Prineipallyin
the Reservation.
AUSTIN, TEX, Jan. 25, 1889.


To the Gazette.
Your favor of the 9Th inst. asking to
be furnished with certain information
from the records of this Office received.
In reply, Will state that it is impossible
within reasonable length of time to
even approximately answer many of the
questions asked, for the following rea-
sons:
l. The exact area of the state is not
known, though it is estimated to con-
tain l72 ,Go4 100 acres.
3. The quantity allowed for bays,
l ,722 $50 acres, to be deducted from the
whole area, may be too large or too
small
3. The quantity of laad covered by
naVigable streams, which under the law
includes all streams of an average width
of thirty feet or more, and which cannot
be crossed by surveys, appear to have
been left entirely out of the estimates
made, the quantity not even being
guessed at.
4. The excuses existing in surveys, es-
pecially those made under the Spanish
and Mexican governments, and perhaps
y
under the republic and state of
Texas, supposed to be at least
l 200 900 acres, have, On account of
the impossibility of making anything like
a correct estimate, never been deducted
from the area of the state.
). Many, I might say thousands of
surveys, varying in quantity from a few
acres to many leagues, which have been
charged against the public domain, have
subsequently been abandoned or declared
invalid from various causes without
proper credit being given for its return TO
the mass of the public domain.
From the foregoing and other reasons
not mentioned you will see how utterly
impossible it is to make a satisfactory
statement without devoting more time
than the business of the Office would at
present admit of. The following taken
from the reports IS the commissioners of
tie general land Office, for the last forty
years, will give .sou some idea of the
amount of lands q Rnted by the Spanish
and Mexican gov >rnments, as well as
certificates issued ID claims returned to
this office under the republic and state of
Texas, towit:
Grants by Spain and Mesico., %, 500 600
Confirmed by acts of February 10, 1852
B9 Sna gS and esyTea 5ss'
First, second and third class claims,
grants to seminaries, to the Calves
ton and Brazos and TO Layaca Navi-
CATION company's and other scrip
mot including Tailroad) and special
acts prior to January l, 1870. Al, 129, 400
January /, 1870. ..,.............. n7,245
University of Texas, act January Is,
1899. fifty leagues. -. 221, 400
University of Texas, Art. 4023 Revised
Statutes. ................ 1000, 900
University of Texas, act April 10, 1883 l. 600 600
Common schools, act April, 10, 1888. 1000, 900
Blind, deaf and dumb, lunatic and
orphan asylums, each 100 900 acres. 5000
Organized counties Tor school purposes
to date s,21O,s
counties in addition to grants made
to date. about 2l5 leagues; or. go, o2o
redemption and settlers claims under
acts prior to act ofNevember u, 1855. l, $40 PSI
Under act of Nov. II, 1855, and later pre-
emption and homestead laws. -. a.oO5, 254
1854, IO1 sections. .........Y....... 256. 600
Equal quantity for state............... 2j6, 900
Certificates issued TO railroad COM
panieS. Alternates 81, $40 ........,. "a $50, 500
Equal quantity for common schools "a, 969.6OO
panies, straight, 5, SIS. -. sos. 82O
Certificates issued to irrigation COM
panies, river improvement companies
and contractors, straight749. ...,..... Az, 500
Contracts alternates $50. ........... 4S9, $50
EQUAL quantity for commonschoolS.. 4 4s9, $50
Sale scrip under act of July Il, lS79.. s. O33 2S3
Veteran donation certificates l, Pr. / 81 $50
Certificates in lieu of patents TO lands
in Greer county cancelled -.......... PSI 362
Confederate scrip certificates 06S.... 2. 647 O40
Equal quantity for common schools. 2,647, 040
Total. is8, $50, O1O
The reports of the commissioner of the
general land Office for the years ending
August 81, 1886 and 1888, show that of the
certificates issued to railroad and other
internal improvement companies, 6, 920,-
$40 acres have been barred by constitu-
tional limitation; also that 26l 1862 acres
of veteran donation certificates, located
and patented on lands in Greer county,
have been returned to this Office and can
celled. In addition to the foregoing,
1891 ,663 acres of Confederate scrip GER
tifcates, including the individual and
state s interest, have not been returned
10 this office, and in consequence thereof
are barred II is estimated that there are
still about {, 900 900 acres of unappropri-
ated public domain, lying principally in
the Texas and Pacific reservation and the
counties north therefrom Respect
fully, R. NJ. HAIL.