The record-union., 1893-05-02
LIEU LAND GRABBING RESPONSE
BIIITY

BILITY.
Our contemporary, the Sacramento
NelcS, comprehends fully the enormity of
the frauds in lieu land, and has hereto
fore advised the Surveyor General to so
administer the land laws as to conform to
the purposes and objects of the Constitu-
ton of the State, whether the statutes ex-
listing outline such land system or not.
In recent statement, however, it de-
clares in effect that the laws were respon-
sible for the opportunity for fraud.
In reply to this. we stated that at the
beginning OF our Investigations we
entertained similar view, but the more
closely the subject is examined, the
clearer it becomes that the practice of
obtaining lands by the exercise of lieu
right through the lnstrumentality of
dummies is unlawful under the existing
statutes.
In the first place, the requirement of
title in this way inures to the benefit OF
the already large land-holders, and a very
large percentage of the land acquired by
the exercise Of lieu right by land attor-
neys who make business OF this species
of speculation, is sold to adjoining land
owners. In TACT, such landowners are
usually the best market. They have no
other way of obtaining additions to their
possessions. They have exhausted their
right to homestead, and the State lands
are the only lands available to them.
These they acquire by the exercise of lieu
right through the instrumentalities ot
dummies, and it is our opinion, hereto
fore expressed and repeated, that the
stuffed safe in the Surveyor Generals
office is full of applications of dummies
and dummies only.
If we had been afforded an opportunity
for the publication of their names, these
facts would have been apparent long ago.
The declaration by the commission, ap-
pointed by the Survey yor-General, that
the applications are void and unlawful,
gives those who made them an opportu-
nifty to withdraw them; and this they are
doing for the sole purpose OF escaping
scrutiny which was ineyltable by court
proceedings.
The Constitution of California, Section
2, Article XVII, declares that "the
holding of large tracts of land, unculti-
waited and unimproved, by individuals or
corporations, is against the public interest,
not inconsistent with the rights of private
property" If there is law on the
statute books of the State which permits
the holding of these tracts OF land, uncul-
tivated and unimproved, so far as the
State land is concerned, it is against the
public interest, and in the case of the
State lands, a prohibition to this effect
would not be inconsistent with the rights
of private property.
Section OF the same article declares
that "the lands belonging to this State
which are suitable for cultivation shall
be granted only TO actual settlers and in
quantities not to exceed $40 acres to each
settler under such conditions as shall be
prescribed by law" The law then could
prescribe conditions only consistent with
this section of the Constitution, and since
the Surveyor members of the
Legislature and the Governor and Attor-
ney-General take an oath to support the
Constitution of the State they should re-
fuse to enforce any statute inconsistent
an oath to support the Constitution of the
State as the supreme law of the State, or
its organic law, his oath means that he is
to administer the law as he understands
it until judicial determination of the
question shall prove by authoritative in
terpretation that his understanding is
wrong.
We have not the time, nor the inclina-
ton at the present time, to discuss the
question as to the obvious meaning OF
the statutes upon this subject, but if there
are laws on the statute books of California
whereby the holding of large tracts OF
land uncultivated and unimproved may
be exercised through the purchase OF
State lands, such laws are unconstitu-
tional; and if lands belonging to the
State, suitable for cultivation, are granted
or alienated TO any one not an actual
settler, and this by virtue of the law, the
law itself is unconstitutional and void.
We earnestly welcome the valuable
assistance OF our contemporary in the
effort the people of California are now
making to secure the 300, 900 acres of land
! TO actual settlers only.
WHO Is RESPONSIBLE.