St. Paul daily globe., 1892-07-02
The Manitoba Claims the
Ownership Of &c, 900 Acres
Worth 100000
Held by Russell Sage as
Trustee Of the Hastings
& Dakota.
The History Of a Keenly Con-
tested Suit Succinctly
Outlined.
A Stakeholder Temporarily
Clogs the American In
demnity Company.

An important suit in equity was be-
gun yesterday in the United States cir
cult court, which involves 245.919 acres
OF railroad lands. worth about 100000.
The complainant in the action is the
st. Paul, Minneapolis & Manltoba Rail-
way company. and the defendant is the
noted New York railway magnate, Rus
sell Sage, as trustee.
The lands are located in the counties
OF Dakota, Scott, Carver and Mcleod in
Minnesota. The place limits of the st.
raul. Minneapolis 81 Manitoba and of
the Hastings & Dakota cover the lands,
and the controversy grows out of the
faet that both roads filed OH the same
lands. The rival roads have contested
the matter through the land Office, and
the secretary of the interior decided
last October in favor of the Hastings Sc
Dakota, and early in April of this year
so Certified to the state of Minnesota.
The lands were decided by Minnesota,
through the governor on April %, 1892,
to Russell Sage as the successor in i'll
terest and assignee aud grantee of the
Hastings & Dakota Railway company.
The Manitoba" claims that the de-
elslon of the land Office was erroneous,
and asks the court to so decide and to
require Russell Sage to convey the
lands to the Manitoba company.
The lands are among those granted by
act OF congress in 1857 to the state of
minnesota, which provided for
Grant Of Lands
IN alternate sections to aid in construct
Ing certain railroads. Among the roads
specified was one from Saltwater, by
way of st. Paul and st. Anthony, to
point between the foot of Big Stone
lake and the mouth of Sioux Wood
river. with a branch by way of ST. Cloud
and Crow Wing to the nayigable waters
of the Red River of the North. In 1857
the territorial legislature incorpo-
rated the Minnesota u Pacific Railroad
company, and granted it lands for the
purpose of aiding in building road
from Saltwater, via st. Paul and St.
Anthony, to Breckenridge, with a
branch from st. Anthony, by way of
Anol1a, st. Cloud and Grow Wing, to
st. Vincent. The location of the Min
nesota & Pacific was made and part of
Its road built soon after the grant.
Several acts OF congress and of the
legislature of Minnesota were passed
from time to time giving additional
rights to the Minnesota IL Pacific COM
pany, amending its charter. changing
the line of branch roads, etc.
In 1865 the lands granted were with
drawn from the market by the secretary
OF the interior at the request of the pres
ident of the first division of the st. Paul
q Pacific and the governor of Mime
sofa. The bill Of complaint gives the
history OF the roads which have since
been merged into the Manitoba system.
now controlled by the Great Northern.
1t shows the connection with
the railroads of such men as j.
Horace Thompson. William G. More
head, George l.. Becker, Charles A. T.
Morris. Jacob s. Wetmore, Thomas w.
Pearstall, ThomasDenny and Samuel
J: 1ilden. 1t gives the history of the
Hastings & Dakota road from the time
OF the first grant to it by act of con
gress. approved July 4. 1866. The story
is then directed to when
A Conflict Began
between the two companies over part of
the lands granted in the counties To-
Gated in the Western counties of the
state named above.
1t is alleged that Attorney General
William j. Hahn. of the state of Mime
sofa, began a quo warranto proceeding
against the Hastings & Dakota company
in 1856. which resulted in forfeiture of
its charter rights and franchises. In the
same year the legislature of Minnesota
extended the corporate privileges of the
Hastings IL Dakota cOmnanv for fhroe
years. While this extension lasted, in
December, 1889, the Hastings & Da-
kota company granted all its rights
to its lands to Russell Sage,
of New York. He was also granted its
rights by suit Or in equity to any lands
in the state on which it had any claim.
This conveyance was in trust to be dis
posed of and distrib button of the pro-
ceedS thereof among preferred stock
holders of the Hastings & Dakota COM
pany.
The bill of complaint proceeds to show
how the land grants of the two COM
panieS. within the ten-mile limits of
each road, conflict, and gives the his
tory of the contest before the land
office.
The cot is asked to decree that the
st. Paul, Minneapolis d Manitoba COM
pany is the owner of the land in ques.-
tion and entitled to have Russell Sage
convey the same to it by deed property
executed, and to declare that he only
OWNS them in trust for the '.Manitoba,''
instead of in trust for the Hastings 81
Dakota company.
The bill of complaint covers sixty-two
pages of printed matter. and is signed
by NJ. ID. Grover as complainants' solic-
itOr