Morris tribune., 1891-11-25
Indemnity Lands.

EDITOR TRIBUNE:-I am just in re-
ceipt of very valuable letter to set
tiers on the r. r. indemnity lands OF
the st. Paul, M. Il M, also the Hast
ings & Dakota railroad, dated at us.
Land Office, Marshall, Mimi, Nov. Ii,
1891, which says, among other things:
Referring to land decisions, l will say
that up to the present time we have
received about $50 applications, and
each and every one of them must be
rejected, as we have not heard sin
gle word from the general land office,
and we are unable to state whether
these indemnity lands will become
government property or not. If a
person is actually living upon any
tract of land of this class, we under
stand that he or she will have the first
right to complete an entry in the event
that the land should revert to the pub
lie domain. I should advise the party
to make an application unless he has
done SO.
The above is all the information [
have up to date, but a blessing to
hear that my former arguments in
reference to these lands have been ap
proved by the department. You will
see from the above that an application
is necessary in case you have failed 10
do SO. The older the application, the
better; hold on to your old title, let
the same be homestead, timber cul-
ture, or presumption, as the new land
law cannot interfere with applications
made prior to March 3, 1891.
[ see that some of the state papers
are advising settlers to go to the land
Office and make their homestead APP
plications. To that say, it is fraud,
when the same thing can be done be-
fore any clerk of court in the same
land Office district, and the expense to
the land Office is unnecessary.
Remember, settlers, that each and
every application is and will be re-
jected until the suit between the R.R.
Go. and the Interior Department is
settled. After rejected you have 30
days to appeal in; failing to appeal
you case is closed. I have over 100
applications with appeal now pending
before the general land Office, but am
sorry to say I have too many dead
beats on my list to encourage me in
making further expense out of my
own pocket, hence I will give credit to
nearly one-half of making prompt re-
mittance.
One thing some of these settlers
have failed to do, and that is ma
jority of them have not complied with
the timber culture law. If they have
not they must not blame me nor the
government for their own neglect and
perhaps loss of the claim. In my
district there are several thousand
acres ready for settlement under the
secretary's decision.
I expect further advices and infor-
nation from the Interior Department,
which information and letters can be
seen at the Office of the clerk of court
in Morris on Saturday next, where 1
will remain during the day.
All I have to state is that parties
who have not used their homestead
right should apply either at the land
Office or clerk of court for the home
stead papers, provided they intend to
make the same their home. The cost
is trife. You have, if rules are not
changed, six months to move on the
land. Stevens county alone has sew
eral thousand acres of unsettled and
unoccupied land. Swift and Big
Stone have equal amount. Lookout,
old settlers, who may hold from 100
up to 4SO acres of these lands; divide
it up among your sons and daughters.
If you have none of them, let your
friends and relatives have it, for fear
some trasient member may gobble it
on speculation.
X. J. HUsEyoLD.
Cyrus, Pope Co., Mimi, Nov. %, 81,