Aberdeen herald. [volume] (Aberdeen, Chehalis County, W.T.) 1886-1917, 1892-08-25
LIEU LANDERs WIN A POINT.
The Northern Pacific Railroad Neglected
the Letter of the New Law.

The northern racine Railroad neglected
the Letter of the New Law.
Colfax Commoner.
Attorney James V. O'Dell, of Colfax is
in receipt Of a copy OF letter addressed
June II, 1892, by Acting Commissioner
Stone to Hon. j. w. Lawrence of the
Waterville land office, which pertains to
certain lieu lands in the Watervile dis
trict. The letter is of general interest to
lieu land settlers and is herewith pub
lished in the Commoner. The letter
reads as follows:
GENERAL LAND OFFICE
WASHINGTON CRY, June II, 1926
To j. w. Lawrence, Register United
States Land Office, Waterville, Wash.
SIR: l have examined indemnity selec-
ton list No. 16 of the Northern Pacific
railroad company for lands formerly in
the North Yakima district, and find that
said list was filed in the local office Octo-
Der IL, 1888, and on the same day APP
proved and afterwards transmitted to
this Office in due course of business.
The lands embraced in the list lie
along and on the north side of the Cas-
cade branch, in Washington, and con-
sist OF 220 items, containing from 40 to
100 acres each, and aggregating 81, 1902,
20 acres, while the basis, upon which the
selection is made, are located in Idaho
The selection is based upon the third
section of the act making the grant to
said company, which provides that when
ever, prior to the definite location or it's
line OF road, any of tile granted sections,
or parts of sections, shall have been
granted, sold, reserved, occupied by
homestead settlers, or pre-empted, or
otherwise disposed Of. other lands, shall
be selected in lieu thereof, under the di-
recton of the secretary of the interior,
in alternate sections, and designated by
odd numbers, not more than 10 miles be-
yond the limits of said granted sections.
1t follows that the loss of it's grant in the
manner prescribed, OF tract or tracts of
land corresponding to those which it
claims as indemnity, is under the plain
provision of this grant, an essential to
the right of the company to so select.
Hence the selection must be made, tract
for tract, of the lost lands, not exceeding,
however, in any case, an entire section.
To make the selection properly in accord
ance with the rule. it is absolutely essen
tial that the losses should be specified
with particularly, and the selections in
lieu thereof correspond Herewith in
quantity as nearly as legal sub
divisions will permit.
If the loss of an entire section, as it APP
pears to be in this case, it would have
been sufficient if the lost lands had been
surveyed, and it could have been de-
termiped with certainty that they were
in reality lost-to select as indemnity
therefor an entire section, or parts of a
section or sections, in group, not, how
ever, to exceed the section lost.
And SO, in like manner, for the loss of
any smaller quantity OF land Each loss.
however; must be separately specified
and the selection in lieu thereof desig-
mated.
This requirement becomes Very ma
terial where the lands, as in this case,
had been thrown open to settlement
priorto selection, for, otherwise, it would
be impossible, should part of the basis
fail to say what particular tract or tracts
selected should be Cancelled; or should
any number of the tracts selected Gas
this list may have been) be Cancelled on
account of the prior right of settlers, it
would be impossible to say what tract or
tracts had been used as basis and what
not.
See ID L. d., 81, $40 and 44O; also s L.
d., 307; 10 l.. d., PA.
Under these decisions, the designations
upon which the selections in this are
basel cannot be recognized, and, in re-
jecting the designations, the selections,
being unsupported, must fall
|, therefore, hold for cancellation said
list No, is, sui ject to the usual right of
appeal.
You will advise all applicants for lands
en- braced in this list of said action.
Very respectfully,
[Sig ledl w. NJ. STONE,
Acting Commissioners.