The Kootenai herald. [volume] (Kootenai, Idaho) 1891-1904, 1893-11-04
THE MINERAL LANDS
UNITED STATES COURT DECISION
Railroad Companies Required to Take
Notice of Mineral Claims on
Granted Lands.


bered sections within the railroad
grants of the state of Montana has been
decided by the United States court of
appeals in a case from this state. 1t is
well known that the land grant rail-
road companies claim title 10 all
mineral lands in odd numbered sections
of government grants, the mineral
character of which was not established
at the time of the grant. The railroad
company is upheld in this position by
the decision of United States Judge
Sawyer, who ruled that the clause in
the land grant excepting mineral lands
did not obtain in cases where the
mineral was discovered subsequent
to the grant. In instances the officers
Of the United States land Offices have
refused TO proceed with a mineral APP
plication where it covered a parcel of
an odd numbered selected section with
in the limits of railroad grant with
out the issuance of direct and special
summons to the railroad company, or
the production of an abandonment
from the railroad company.
The rule has been settled beyond any
peradventure by the decision of the
United States court of appeals in the
case of the Northern Pacific railroad
company VS.. Cannon ct al, "a Fed.
Rep, 1852, reported by Edward A. Bel
cher
In that case the railroad company
filed bill in the Uuited States circuit
court for Montana TO quiet title for a
parcel of an odd numbered section of
its land grant. The grant to the
Northern Pacific railroad company, as
in the case with all of the land grants
to railroad companies on the Pacific
coast, excepted mineral lands" The
bill alleged that by the federal survey
the land in question had been returned
company filed its map Of general route
Feb. %, 1879, and its map of definite To-
cation July 1882; that on Aug. 2s, 1878,
the defendants, pretending that the
ldAQ was NdAuaOlC lOl LnC PlCGAOuo
metals contained within it, made appli-
cation to the United States land ofice
to purchase the land as mineral land p
that the officers of the land department
gave the customary notice of said ap
plication by publication and posting,
and none other; that afterwards such
testimony was taken and such proceed
ings had touching such application
and the alleged character of said land
as "minaral land" that the officers per,
mitted the defendants to enter and pay
for said land as mineral land" and
afterwards patent for said land as
mineral land" was issued to the de-
PENDANTS by the United States; that the
company had no actual notice of the
patent proceedings, and did not know
of such application until long after.
wards, and had no opportunity to make
a contest or show the character CT the
land.
A demurrer was interposed and enter.
tanned, and on appeal the United States
court of appeal said
Appellant (the railroad company
claims that no notice was given per.
sonally to it. The law does not require
any such notice to be given. The notice
required by section 1925 is general
notice to all persons who might from
any cause claim an interest in the land.
Under section 1925, Rev. Stat. U. S.,
provision is made in case of contest
as to the land, whether agricultural OF
mineral, and if appellant had desired
to contest that question it had the op,
portunity TO do so, and after initiating
a contest it would have been entitled
to personal notice of all the proceed.
ing thereafter taken and to have par
ticipated therein, and offered such
proofs as it might have been able &c
procure as to the character Of the land
Not having initiated any such contest ii
is not in a position to complain that il
was NOT personally served with notice
of the proceedings.
Appellants claim was for agricultural
land included in the grant. The defend
ants application was for mineral lanC