Los Angeles daily herald., 1889-05-28
IMPORTANT DECISION.
The Title to 100000 Acres OF
Land Affected.
A RAILROAD LAND CASE.
Judge Ross Renders an opinion OF
Great Interest to Many
PrOperty-HOlders.

cision in the case OF the Onlteu otates
America against the Southern Pacific
Company, which affects the title to 800,
600 acres of land. The decision is a.
follows:
By the bill fled in this case the United Statel
to the Southern Pacific Railroad Company OF
March 20, 1876. April 4, 1879 and December
1888 I9r snd to oe
tiffs' alleged title thereto. To the bill, as
amended, demuIrers have been interpOsed
which raised the question OF the sufficiency Of
the matters alleged TO entlte tne plalntln 70
the relief sought
The allegations, in substance, are, that COM
plainant by an act approved July %, 1865, en-
titled AN Act granting lands to aid in the con-
struction of railroad and telegraph line from
the States of Missouri and Arkansas to the Pa
cific coast" granted to the Atlantic and Pacific
Railroad Company, for the purpose of aiding
in the construction of said railroad etc., "every
alternate section OF public land, not mineral,
designated by odd numbers, to the amount OF
twenty alternate sections per mile on each side
of said railroad line. as said company may
adopt, through the Territories of the United
States, and ten alternate sections of land per
mile on each side of said railroad whenever it
on the line thereof the United States have full
title. not reserved, sold, granted or otherwise
appropriated, and free from pre- emption or
other claims or rights at the time the line OF
said road is designated by plat thereof filed
in the office of The Commissioner of the GEN
eral Land Office; and whenever, prior to said
time any of said sections or parts of sections
shall have been granted. sold, reserved, occu-
pied by homestead settlers, or pre-empted, or
otherwise disposed of, other lands shall be
selected by said company in lieu thereof,
under the direction of the Secretary OF the In
terror, in alternate sections and designated by
odd numbers, not more than ten miles beyond
cluding the reserved numbers; provided. that If
said route shall be formed upon the line of any
other re- iroad route, to aid in the construction
Of which lands have been heretofore granted
by the United States. as far as the routes are
upon the same general line the amount OF land
heretofore granted shall be deducted from the
amount granted by this act;" that by section A
of the same act it Is provided that whenever
said Atlantic and Pacific Company shall have
twenty. five consecutive miles of any portion of
said railroad and telegraph lire ready for the
service contemplated, the President shal1 ap-
point three commissioners to examine the
same, and If it shall appear that twenty five
consecutive miles of the road aud telegraph
line have been completed. as required by this
President, and patents shall be issued to said
company confirming thereto "the right and
title to said lands situated opposite to
and co-terminus with said completed section
OF said road" from time to time, whenever
twenty-five additional consecutive miles shall
have been constructed, completed and in readi-
conveying to the company additional sections
of the land; that by section of the act it Is
provided that the President shall cause the
land to be surveyed for forty miles in width on
both sides of the entire line of said road, after
the general ronte shall be fixed, and as fast as
may be required by the construction of said
railroad, land the odd sections of land hereby
granted shall not be liable TO sale or entry or
pre-emptfon before or after they are surveyed,
except by said company as provided in this
act" that by SECTION 1S OF the same act the
Southern Pacific Railroad Company was au
thorized to connect with the said Atlbntic and
Pacific Railroad at such points near the boun-
Diary line OF the State of California as they
should deem most suitable for railroad line
to San Francisco. and was required to have
uniform gauge and rate of freight and fare with
the Atlantic and Pacific road, and was given
similar grants of land subject to all the cOndi-
tions and limitations provided in the act, and
was required to construct its road on the like
regulations as to time and manner as provided
in respect to the Atlantic and Pacific road.
1t is alleged that the Atlantic and Pacific
Company duly accepted the said grant and pro-
ceeded to construct its road and on or about
March IL, 1872, did designate the line of said
road by q plat thereof filed in the Office of the
Commissioner Of the General Land Office, and
that all the odd sections on each side of said
road, for thirty miles, were thereupon with
drawn from market and reserved from sale.
The bill, as amended, further alleges that by
Section % OF said Act of Congress- approved
rate the Texas and Pacific Railroad Com
pany, and to aid in the construction OF its road
and for other purposes" it was provided as
follows:
"That for the purpose of connecting the
Texas and Pacific with the city of San Fran
cisco, the Southern Pacific Railroad Company
of California is hereby authorized tsubiect
railroad from point at or near Tehachapa
Pass by way of Los Angeles to the Texas Pa
cifc Railroad at or near the Colorado River.
with the same rights, grant s and privileges, and
subject to the same limi atons, restrictions an d
conditions as were granted to the said South
ern Pacific Railroad Company by the Act of
July 27, 1866. Provided, however, that this
section shall in no way affect or impair the
right, present or prospective of the Atlantic
and Pacific Railroad Company or any other
railroad company"
The bill, as amended, alleges that the South
ern Pacific Company accepted this grant and
on April g. 1871, did designate the line of It's
said road by plat IT. thereof which It on that DAY
General Land Office aud did construct and com.
plete the same in the manner and within the
time pre-. eribed, except that it did not connect
with the Texas aud Pacific Railroad.
1t Is averret that on or about March 20, 1876
April 4, 1879, and December 81 1888, res
pectively, the Commissioner of the Gen
of law therefor, caused certain patents to be
signed by the President and by the Receiver OF
the General Land ofice and issued the same to
the Southern Pacific Railroad Company for Ger
tain lands sitnated in the county OF Los An
geles, State of California, in odd numbered sec
tions, within ten miles of the route of the road
the designated route of location filed in tbs
Office of the Comm issioner of the General Land
Office pursuant to said act of Congress of Marcf
3, 1871 and which said lands are also within
thirty miles of, but more than twenty miles
from, the line of road of the said Atlantic an6
Pacific Railroad Company as designated by itt
plat filed in the office of the Commissioner o.
the General Land Office pursuant to the act O.
July 81 1866
The amended bill also AYERS ''that at the tim,
the route of location of said Atlantic and
Pacific Railroad was filed on March 13. 1872,
here was within the twenty mile or primary
limits OF said road, situated opposite ito thu
tracts described in said pretended patent.
large amount of land which had previous tt
that time been granted, sold, reserved sn(
otherWlse appropriated, which amounted tt
more IN the aggregate than the amount of tn,
lands described in said pretended patents
but no indemnity land has been selected il
lieu thereof by the Government or said RAILROAD
company, "and that the lands described in tn,
patents have at all times been "agricultura
lands aud OF greater value than other lands il
the indemnity limits of said Atlantic and Paci
dc Railroad Company" and "1ave never beer
stead settlers. pre-empted or otherwise disposed
of by the United States or by the Mexican OF
Spanish Governments, or any other Govern
ment or authority, in whole or in part, or an,
estate or interest therein, otherwise than a
set forth herein.''
1t is further averred that on or about Marcl
II, 1887, Ignacio Palomares and Ricardo Veja
presented petition to Juan B. Alvarado, theI
Governor of Upper California under the Mexi
can Government, for grant OF the place know
by the name Of San Jose. That thereupon afte
investigation, such grant was, on April Is
Palomares and vejar of the place called Sal
Jose, in conformity with the plat attached Z
the petition and within the boundaries thereii
expressed That thereafter, and on or abou
Ignacio Pslomares and Ricardo Vejar. IRE
sented their petition to the project of tn
district, fer grant for the land called Sal
Jose. ceded BY the decree of April Is, 1887
aud nd IT. 81. laV