The weekly tribune. [volume] (Great Falls, Mont.) 1891-1894, 1891-07-04
COL. SANDERS SPEECH.

/, speech made in the United States senat,
last September, and the only apology tn,
TRIBUNE can offer for SO doing is that i
did not receive a published copy of thu
full text of the speech until yesterday
The speech is a discussion of railroad
grants, mineral lands, and the question
shall there be a new subsidy ?" i
forms a part of the debate in the scnat,
when that body was considering the re
port of the committee of conference or
the disagreeing votes of the two houses
on the bill to forfeit certain lands hereto
fore granted for the purpose of aiding in
the construction of railroads. and fol
other purposes. Candor compels the adj
mission that the speech is an able one
able in the presentation of the subject
matter, able in argument and able in de.
auctions While all may not coincide with
the colonel in his conclusions concerning
the right of the government to declare
forfeited certain lands within the grant
to the Northern Pacific, many will agree
with him as to the unwisdom of such
policy.
The text of the colonel's speech may
thus be c~pitomized: Does the Northern
Pacific Railroad company own the min
cral lands in the odd-numbered sections
granted to that corporation by the
United States government? Docs the
right remain in the United States to de
clare forfeited such lands granted to the
Northern Pacific railroad company lying
perpendicular to that part Of the road
not completed in 1879? The latter ques-
ton is first discussed. 1t is not pre-
sumed that in a newspaper article of
reasonable length all the arguments SO
ably advanced by the colonel can be re
pcated. The attempt will not be made.
AS against the proposition to forfeit
these lands on account of the non-com.
pliance Of the railroad company with the
strict letter of its charter, the speaker
showed the impossibility of such COM
pliance by reason of the depredations
and attacks of hostile tribes of Indians
on the line of the road: that the govern
ment failed to maintain peace on such
line as it had implicitly agreed to main
tain, and that as it was not contemplated
"a corps of employees should themselves
declare or conduct war in the progress of
the construction of the road, plain men
would say equity and justice demanded
that such a condition of affairs delaying
within the time prescribed
should not operate to procure a forfeiture
of the franchise.
The colonel furthermore stated that it
was argued in behalf of the company
time was not of the essence of this
grant, that if it was the forfeiture must be
claimed and enforced for that reason
the road was incomplete and that
such forfeiture could only operate to de-
prive the road of the land perpendicular to
its unfinished portions. The contentious,
colonel averred, were profitless for
the reason that the Northern Pacific rail
road has been completed and no forfeit
ure declared. He holds that as money
has been borrowed on these lands, and
debts are secured by them it would
be an injustice to the individuals who
have purchased lands of the company,
and a gross injustice to the various com
munities, whose titles to their lands
would be involved in uncertainty, to de-
clare their forfeiture to the government.
And he adds: at does not need argu-
to maintain the proposition that
security of titles and repose of rights are
the essential foundations of all private
and public prosperity" The colonel
puts the question of forfeiture very
in the following illustration:
If | sell "A horse upon condition that
SO shall be paid therefor to me on the
first day of each month until the 800 for
which | sold him is paid, the horse to re-
mine unless each so is paid at the
time agreed. a failure on the part of the
purchaser to pay me on the first of De
cembcr, not insisted upon by me then as
cause of forfeiture, will not operate to
annul the contract, and a receipt by me
on the first of the ensuing
February for the so due in December
will operate as a waiver of the condition,
in all tribunals of equity and in all courts
Of conscience the wide world over.
The inference is evident. AS the gov
eminent did not insist upon the forfeit
IRE of the granted lands when such for
could be claimed by reason of
upon the part of the Northern
Pacific to comply with the provisions of
is contract, such non -insistance acted as
A waiver Of the conditions of the contract
all tribunals of equity and in all
of conscience the wide world over.
The colonel would, therefore, reject as
wrong, as legally impossible, and
as economically useless. attempts to for
these lands along the line of the con-
road.
The colonel takes popular ground con-
the disposition of mineral lands
..,- ,.A1.