Sacramento daily record-union. [volume] (Sacramento [Calif.]) 1875-1891, 1890-02-09
GRAND ISLAND.
ITS OLD RECLAMATION DEBTS ABOUT
TO BE WIPED OUT.
a New Era OF Prosperity Dawning Upon
the Distrfct-Williams s. Blk
ler's liberal Terms.

List Wednesday, meeting Of the land
owners on Grand Island, Sacrament
county, Ezs held at the residence If A. 7
j. Reynolds, one of the Trustees of tha
reclamation district The meeting wa
for the purpoee of arriving at settlement
of matters connected with reclamatio,
work running back for period of nearly
twenty years. Williams & Bixler of Sar
Francisco, who own some fI.00O of tn,
IS 900 acres on the island, have been en-
deavoring for years TO recover the reclama
ton tax from the settlers, few Of whom
only have paid in full. The suits have
thus lar been unsuccessful, but the tax
stands as cloud on the property, and nc
new assessments can be levied until the old
ones are all collected. Even if new as
sessment should be made, in order to go
on with necessary work, the holders of the
old warrants could pounce upon the money
in the County Treasury.
The levee work done the past year was
by general agreement among the land
owners, each sgreeiDg to repair his own
levee. But similar course cannot always
be pursued, as there are matters, such as
drainage, ETC., which must be handled as q
whole by the Trustees. Those who are de-
linquent on reclamation taxes for which
assessments have been levied in the past,
are owing in the neighborhood of $40 per
acre.
It is claimed that, in addition to this, the
sum OF S157 800 10 had been expended in
WORK several years ago, for which the
ROurd nf bovo cd t.
an assessment, and that body will no doubt
stand by that action. This latter sum stands
against all the land in the island, and the
few who have paid in full on all assess
ments levied ere now asked to pay again,
which they will no doubt refuse to do, hay
ing already paid 100 cents on the dollar for
assessments that delinquents can now pay
off with 40 cents, under the terms of an
offer lately made by Williams & Bixler.
This is a very liberal offer by these gen.
tlemen, and all who were indebted to the
district will of course avail themselves of
the opportunity to wipe out their obliga-
tons at that figure; but in justice to those
who had paid in full, they should be
allowed sufficient at least of what they
have overpaid to Offset their pro rata of
work claimed as having been since done,
and the nature of which no one knows
much about, as a majority of the Trustees
at that time were residents of San Fran
cisco-one the attorney and the other the
book keeper for Williams & Bixler.
Thomas 81. Williams was present at the
meeting referred to above, and offered to
sell to all who were delinquent the war
rants held by him for 40 cents on the dol
lar, and further offered to give time to all
who could not pay the cash, taking their
individual notes for the amount. Those
present availed themselves of this liberal
offer, and in short time upward of $751;
900 worth of warrants were bought by the
settlers, The total debt, as claimed,
amounts to S243, 307, and of this Williams
& Bixler held $226, 1876 in warrants and
others (unknown), $l7,171.
The entire matter will now no doubt be
amlcably adjusted, and the suits pending
in the Courts for the recovery of these old
assessments dismissed. The levee will be
put in fine condition the coming season a
drainage canal will be cut through the
center of the island; food-gates will be
put in to run off the sipage water and ma
tural rainfall, and the pump put in order to
relieve the island of what remains after
the food-gates shall have done their work.
The fact of the levees having stood the
high water of the present winter, although
unfinished, gives assurance of permanent
reclamation, and a couple of years more
will work revolution in the condition of
Grand Island, one of the finest and richest
tracts of swamp land in California.