Wichita eagle., 1889-11-02
PUT THEM IN THE PENITENTIARY
Lot OF Treacherols Wretches Who are Rob
bling Honest People Of Wichita.

1t has been scarce a score or years since
the government owned all the lands upon
which the city of Wichita is located. and a
great majority of the men who received
the original titles to them are living, as
are great majority of all those who since
then have at different times owned them.
Notwithstanding this exceedingly brief
period in the history of land titles, it is
undoubtedly true that many mistakes
and bluuders have been made in convey
ances, that is, technical mistakes as meas
ured by the fine determinations of courts
and the rules of abstractors and their stand
ards of conveyances; mistakes incidental
to the hurry and disorganized condition of
a new settlement with families and rela-
tives scattered, and half of the officers
green and incompetent. Had Wichita
grown along as does the average town and
had consumed generation or two of time
in developing its present important prop
erty values. these little technical over
sights would have been cured by time or
buried out of sight and possibility of
resurrection by conditions and circum-
stances. But an acre of ground in some
portions of Wichita, which cost but a
dollar and quarter score of years ago.
is today. with its improvements, worth a
quarter or half million dollars The
whole original site and much adjoining
territory, is all covered with
homes and with shops, with great
business houses and with churches and
schools, covered in short with all that
Wichita is or has put here by Wichita
people, not by dead spectators nor by
their heirs.
But there are instances where few of
the parties originally owning interests
here, of comparatively small value then,
but of great value now. who have since
died, in whose titles of transfer technical
plumbers were made, in which descriptions
were incomplete, acknowledgements, de-
fective, wills not properly probated, minor
heirs rights not entirely covered, and in
which wives neglected to sign, etc., etc.
Now, after the men who own the prop
erty today have by their hard sacrifices, by
their brains and enterprise, made the prop
erty valuable, after these men who
paid the full value for it to the
original owners or their representatives,
who in turn were entirely content in the
knowledge that they had received compen-
III iuii, we l1uO tudU lUGIt Is IL CLASS
of INSCRIPTIONS wretches who make it a
business to hunt up such discrepancies for
the purpose of exacting fees to clear the
title During the days of the real estate
excitement hundreds of thousands of dol
lars. probably in the aggregate, were black
mailed out of parties who were compelled
to pay exactions that they might execute
deeds, widows were robbed, homes cloud
ed, and many hardworking, honest people
distracted and bled. Some of these skunkS
would board the cars and travel thousands
of miles to get a squit-claim deed under
pretence that it Was to quiet title and
then compel the innocent individuals, who
had bought their property in entire good
faith. and whose deeds at the time so far
human knowledge conld go, was all right,
to pay the expenses of the trip and
and blood money additional 1t hasn't
been three weeks since an honest mechanic
came to US for advice in just such a
dilemma. His home is his all. He earned
it by hard knocks, but the man from whom
he had bought died and left an heir whose
attorneys have persuaded said heir to stain
The memory of his dead father and to rob
The innocent party. The man said he had
paid the lawyer as long as he was able but
be did not want now to give up his home.
He did not give the lawyers name but
our advice to him was to take a green elm
club and pound his tormenter until he
begged for mercy. 1t would be more
manly TO put on "a mask and way-lay your
nelghbo in the dark and at the muZZle of
i gun compel him to give up all he had
about him, even TO his clothing, than by
such a technicality attempt to rob his
wife and children of their home, be that
nome ever so humble
Instances where speculative properties
are only involved, properties that have bad
orced sales. property taken from the
owner for taxes and the like, we would
not critise any attempt to cloud or break
5he title, because the transactions and
titles are only speculative; but, the rogue
Who attempts to rob his neighbor of that
which the neighbor has honestly acquired,
md the title to which was given and re-
'eived in all good faith, and the increased
7alue of which that neighbor has himself
argely ADDED, is skunk too dirty to be
by an honorable community;
$ conspirator that some law ought
o reach and punish. The courts
will, in the interest of community
end poor, misguided, innocent boy to
he penitentiary for sneak thieying
,altry fifty or hundred dollars, then
Why should another sneak thief, under the
olor of law be allowed to openly take |
rom an honest man all that he has saved |
n a lifetime, together with the very roof |
hat shelters his wife and innocent chill
lren. One of Wichlta's most enterprising |
,itizens was murdered by this kind of an |
Had he not died he would have |
cen driven to a mad house. Others have |
)een driven almost to desperation. and we |
'elieve. one is today in an insane asylum. |
)ne poor German would have lost his |
arm but for timely discovery, and the |
kuuk who tried to beat the honest. but |
gnorant man ought to be in the peniten
larry. He is hundred times more guilty /
than the thief who cracks a safe |
r breaks store.
Away back in the early seventies a
Dung man accompanied by his bride
topped over in Wichita on his
ray to his new home in Colorado. |
lie was so pleased with the looks of the
own that be remained several days. He
topped at the Douglas Avenue house, the
My house beside a half dozen others then
n this great avenue. He came to advise
18th the writer about what he knew of the
oming Importance Of Wichita, her ad-
antages. etc. He was so pleased, or con-
inced that he invested several thousand
olars through Messrs. Steele & Levy.
Te afterwards, in company with another
IAN whose titles have since been attempt
/ to be clouded, visited the purchaser and
fa ;,,t Cnfnrain homo He !