Delaware gazette and state journal. (Wilmington, Del.) 1883-1902, 1892-07-21

Great Joy When Victory Was Assured.
WASHINGTON, July 19.-The famous
HcGarrahan claim passed the House yes
terday afternoon under suspension of
the rules. This claim is one of the oldest,
and perhaps, one of the most meritorious
that has ever been presented to Congress.
In one way or another il has been pending
for over thirty-iive years. In its day IL has
been in the hands of such men MS Sam
Ward, the king of the lobby; ex-senator
Matt Carpenter, Bob lngersoll and Jerc
Black. 1t was an indirect cause of the
political downfall of ex-Speaker Keifer of
Ohio, who charged that General II. V.
Boynton's advocacy OF the claim was not
purely disinterested. The charge lead to q
controversy which ended disastrously to
Refer.
The history of the claim reads like n
romance. 1t involves the title to n large
tract of land in southern California In
1874, when California was u part of Mex
leo, the government of that particular pro-
vince granted the land which was known
and has since been known as the Rancho
Grande Rancho to Mexican official Vim
cent Gomez BY name, who had rendered
distinguished service to his government.
PURCHASED ny M'GARRAmAH.
In the early '60s William McGarrahan
purchased the land of Gomez. 1t was then
considered almost valueless. About the
time McGarrahan purchased the claim
some person having prospeCted the land
and having discovered valuable quicksilver
and other mineral dcposits--a fact I'M
known to Northumberland finding that
IL had been sold by Gomez exercised the
right of 'squatter sovereignty and took
possession of and held it without title
About 1861, however, when there was
some dispute about the title, McGarahan
took the matter into court and had the
title of his rancho perfected. But the New
ldria Mining Company, which had begun
to work the mineral deposits on the land
refused to surrender the property, and
over their refusal has arisen the giant con-
troversey which has since gone on for 80
years.
Before 1862 Mr.. McGarrahan had secured
two distinct combinations of the title from
the Encouragement ana the secretary Of
the interior. President Lincoln, after an
inquiry, had also decided the grant to he
genuine. The process issued by the courts,
however, and the DEGREES of the secretaries
of the different departments of the govern
ment by some accident, miscarried. The
statute of limitations interviewed and it
soon became evident that Mr.. McCiarra-
hans only redress lay in an appeal to
Congress.
VALUABLE QUICKSILVER MINES.
The mining company, which has been
annually taking thousands upon thou
sands of dollars worth of quicksilver and
other mineral from the land, has con-
tested every inch of the ground. The
matter was first brought to Congress in u
report to the House prepared by John A.
bingham of Ohio from the committee on
Judiciary in 1870. Every committee which
mad the matter under consideration in
subsequent Congresses has reported it
IA. n,,I . lna al Al. Il.
passed one OF the two Houses only to fail
in the other.
1t has been charged that the New Idria
Mining Company maintained regular
lobby here and expended vast sums to de-
feat the claim. Mctiarrahan was poor
man, with nothing to offer except prom
ises, and the cold-blooded lobbyists of
Washington usually preferred the cash in
hand to contingent fees drawn on the in
definite future.
The claim first attracted national noto-
rlety during the '70s, when the late Don
Piatt was the editor of the old Washing
ton Capital. II was charged that Piatt was
in the pay of the mining company. At
any rate he opposed the claims with all
his characteristic yigor, and his venomous
pen blstered everyone who dared to sup
port it, These attacks led to personal
encounter between Mctiarrahan and Piatt
in the old Senate chamber of the Capitol,
now Statuary Hall.
LIVED ON CHARITY.
As the years dragged on McGarrahan
grew poorer and poorer, and for the last
Jew years he has lived practically upon the
charity of his old friends. Some of the at
orneys who have been associated with the
case have interested themselves more ont
of sympathy for him than from any OK
pectation of financial reward. Mctiarrahan
is now an old man. He is bent with years;
his hair is white and his step is feeble. He
is but u wreck of the young, sturdy, vigor-
Gus man who came here so years ago with
the title to a fortune in his pocket, seeking
to have representatives OF the United States
right the wrong which had been done him.
The estate has grown more valuable year
by year until il is now worth i'll the neigh
borhood of $4,000 100.
Colonel L. w. Ayers has been McGarra-
hans attorney during the present Con-
gress. He has persstently importuned
Speaker Crisp in the interest of Justice to
grant a day for the consideration of the
bill. Up until last Tuesday he was re-
fused. On that day he again went to the
Speaker room, but Speaker Crisp shook
his head. The bill only referred the claim
to the court of claims for adjudication, but
it might involve an expenditure of con-
siderable money in the end. Colonel
Ayers was persistent.
Give the old man a day." he said. "He
Will not live to appeal to another Congress-
II you do not give him day you will have
to bury him."
you have big Elm the bill, haze you
not " said Speaker Crisp
"Ies, replied Colonel Ayers, ~ have
my fee in it, Of course. But do not care
3 for that. want old Billy to have his
money before he dies. Give the old mans
bill chance and will assign my interest
in the bill to any bleinstitutiony you
may designate"
THE BILL CALLED UP.
The Speaker at last agreed, and Yesterday
he recognized Mark Smith of Arizona. to
call up the bill. While the vote was being
taken McGarrahan stood outside of the
main door Of the lobby. The bill had
already passed the Senate without dis.
senting voice. If it passed the House the
great object for which he has been striving
so long would be accomplished.
"0ld Billy" us he Is known about the
Capitol, trembled so violently that his
friends had TO hold him. They appealed
TO him to go into a committee room and
wait. The old man shook his head and
would. not bulge. Many of his friends
said his broken frame could not stand the
thock OF another defeat. They held him
jenderly by the arms as he asked each one
who came out of the House whether he
thought This bill' would pass.
THE BILL PASSED.
AT last messenger rushed out and an
/ nounced that the bill had carried The
tears streaIned down the old mans face us
his friends wrung his hands. Then, under
the great strain, the old man gave way.
The. Joy of victory was almost too much
Tor him, He tottered and almost fell and
with tears coursing down his scanned face
the feeble old man was led away.
WILL SELL OFT HIS CLAIM.
McGarraban takes his triumph seriously.
iHe has had good offers from Nav NnrL