Evening journal., 1891-06-20
ROMANCE AND MILLIONS
A Claim Involving 400, 900
Acres of Arizona Land.
AN OLD SPANISH CLAIM DUG UP.

A Journalist Found the Document, Mar
ried the Pretty Heirees to the Vast
Domain and win Now Flight Hard for
= Great Big Fortune.
NEW York, June oo.-The Casa Grande
Improvement company, Of New York, is
soon to present its petition to the new land
court established by the last congress TO
determine the title to 100000 acres OF
Land in Arizona.
It is an old Spanish claim, and the esti-
mated value Of the land involved, as it
stands at present, is between 8, ,0o0, 900 and
SIC, 900. At the expense Of 34,0O0,0O0,
800 600 acres Of the grant can be irrigated,
which will make the total value about
s1o0, 100000.
This petition will probably be the first
business to come before the land court,
which has not yet been organized, but
which will soon organize and be in work
ing order
The Casa Grande improvement company
Qimitedl, of Arizona which has been or
ganized three or four years, has capital
stock OF 81 100000. The company an
nounces the nature of its business to be
lands, mines and waters, stocks, bonds
and water rights, but its officers say the
sole object is to push the ~Peralta grant
claim to a conclusion.
The Pretty Claimant.
The real claimant to these millions OF
acres in Arizona is Donna Sophia Miceola
Masso de la Peralta de la Cordova
Reavis, wife of President Reayis OF the
company.
Mr. and Mrs Reavis are at present stop
ping at the St. Mark s hotel Staten Island.
With the lives of this couple are connected
the romantic features of the Casa Grande
grant.
Mrs. Reavis is a woman OF about thirty,
in whose veins flows Castilian blood. She
has an attractive face and figure with
which is combined a charming personality.
She was born in Arizona. Her parents died
when she was very young
After the death of her parents she was
taken to San Francisco.
Sixteen or seventeen years ago Mr.
Reavis, who was then newspaper writer
while journeying in Mexico, had occasion
to delve into some ancient Spanish archives
in Guadalahara and the City Of Mexico
1t was at this time that he discovered the
Casa Grande grant.
The documentary evidence showd him
that the living lineal descendants of tn.
Baron of Colorado, a Spanish grandee oi
ancient race, were entitled to the fee sim
pie of nearly 5000, 900 acres Of rich mining
and farming lands in Arizona.
Grant Made by King Ferdinand.
The original grant was made by Kin.
Ferdinand vi Of Spain in 174s, VIXEN Spaii
included within her domain all the prop
erty ceded by the Mexican government t,
the United States in 1916.
This immense grant of land in what 4
now Arizona was conferred by Ferdinans
upon his vassal, the baron, as a mark o
his sovereign's affection for distinguishes
services which he had rendered The baror
at once came to the New World and bull
big castle upon his feudal domain. Thl
ruins of his castle can still be seen in Ari
zona.
The baron lived for some years in hi
castle, after which he returned to Spain
After his death the baron's only son SCI
sail for North America and took possession
OF his fathers estate and castle. He, too
returned to Spain and died, but left de
scendants in America, from whom thu
present heir apparent, Mrs. Reavis, is JUS
four generations removed.