The great West. [volume] (St. Paul, Minn.) 1889-18??, 1890-09-05

LAND GRANTS.
BY ONE OF THE SETTLERS.
From the National Anti-Land Grant
Monthly:
1t is indeed a cause of wonder that
in this enlightened age, nearly at the
close OF this most wonderful Of all the
centuries-in the United States OF
America, where all men are supposed
to stand on an equality before the
law-that citizens of this country
may be openly robbed and driven
from their homes, to become wander
ers on the face of the earth, with their
wives and little ones; and yet this is
the daily experience of innumerable
poor families living onwhatis known
as the Maxwell Grant, who, after in
vain looking to Congress for protec-
ton, have had to relinquish their all
4 to the Unsuitable greed of human
monsters, who after years of bribery,
swindling, forging, lying and robbing
at Washington, have developed and
created an organization known as
the land grant business, through
which it is sought to rob the indus
trious, Woodworking settlers of their
homes, the product of years of in
dustrious toll. These expressions
may sound strange in the ears OF the
uninitiated. Yet when rich mon
opolies in a country filled by fraudu-
lent grants, with almost every lawyer
at bar in the territory of New Mexico
interested in land steals, are unable
to carry all their plans to a success
full issue, is not law and justice a Bit
ter mockery to the poor man-when
a change of venue removes his case
hundreds of miles away from his
home and beyond his means of ever
following it; or he is harrassed from
court to court, pOstponement after
postpOnement is resorted to, until
from lack of means he drops behind
his case, when his tormentors secure
Judgment and drive him from home
under the name Of law and Justice :?
The people have appealed in vain to
Congress for relief, to use it's authori-
ty and put stop to such scandalous
proceedings. Occasionally a ray of
hope would light up the path when
Congress would appoint committee
to inquire into the absurd claim
of the Maxwell Grant-but only to
have their hopes dashed to the
ground or, again, when the Governor
would send a commissioner to make
inquiries, who, if not entertained by
the philistines, goe shack stuffed by
one of the many grant spies, ever on
the alert for such game.
Then, again, we have such men as
Surveyor General Julian, who roars
and bellows in print against these
grant thieves and land grabbers,
which to our simple minds sounds
strange for it seems as though when
a public officer calls man swindler
or a thief he should take some action
in the premises and prove his charges
and punish the offender. The brazen
effrontery of the Maxwell grant
officers has become so great that
they actually dared to publicly brag
that they bought the Judge in Den
yer, and that it was simply nonsense
for the people to kick against them.
would not here undertake to review
Judge Brewers lengthy decision; but
in the very outset he announces his
ability to cope with this matter, and
that no matter how fraudulent this
grant may be in it's incipiency and
extent. he is nevertheless bound
to consider it good and valid and
following the ruling of the Supreme
Court, for the simple reason that if
the Supreme Court has mistaken the
law it alone can correct it's error;
and as the Supreme Court held in the
Tameling case, or Sangre de Cristo,
grant confirmed by the act of Con-
gress of June 21, 1860, to be grant
de-nOvo on the part OF the U. S. Gov
eminent, and as the Maxwell grant
was also confirmed by the same act
the Circuit Court Judge Brewery
was bound to follow the ruling of it's
Court, no matter how err
roneous, and even if more land was
actually conveyed to individuals
than they could legally have held or
claimed under the laws of Mexico
prior to the cession of New Mexico
to this government-which is ridicu-
lousy absurd.
Here a few passing remarks will be
proper in regard to the Sangre de
Cristo grant, which is claimed to
have been petitioned for Sept. 81,
1888, by one Narcisso Beaubien and
Louis Lee, from the Civil and Military
Governor OF New Mexico; and that
the reader may reach correct conclu-
in vorrrl fo &1,;c III &C.