The Mt. Sterling advocate. (Mt. Sterling, Ky.) 1890-current, 1894-05-01
ENDED.
THE CLAIM OF WILLIAM NC
GARRAHAN BY THE GRIM
REAPER.
The Old Man No Longer Troubled
Over the Base Injustice
Done Him.
His Famous Claim One of the
Most Noted in All the His
tory of Congress.
His Justice Disputed by None Save
These Who WrOngfully Depriv-
ed Him of His Right.
SAD STORY OF HIS LIFE.

Washington, April 25,-(Special,
The dark angel of death visited
Providence Hospital to-day, and We
toed forever the claim of poor old
William IMcGarrahan. His kind
benevolent face and the familiar figure
that. has appeared regularly during
the sessions of Congress for the
last thirty years and over will be seen
no more. He spent whole life bat
thing manfully against heavy odds, for
justice, and lost. Truly, after life's
titful fever. he sleepsswell.
AS the claimant to the New ldria
quicksilver mine he had been famil-
lar figure at the Capitol for years, and
was we'll known to nearly all the
Senators and Representatives, a ma
jority of whom were believers in the
justice of his claims. A bill to permit
a trial of his case in the Court of
Claims was passed by Congress, but
was vetoed by President Harrison.
Several other bills have been passed
by one House or the other, and
score of committees had reported fav-
orably on the claim. AT the present
time bill passed by the House at this
session is pending in the Senate.
Mr.. McGarrahan visited the House
for the last time Friday in the interest
OF his bill, and when he returned to
the hospital was completely exhausted.
Death was due to a complication of
diseases. @lDropsy developed a few
days ago, and after that he sank rap
!ly until the end came to-day.
The story recalled by the pathetic
death of William MEG arrahan is a sad
one and.full of romance. 1t is a story
that has Iseldom found a par" ell in
fact, though it,has been foreshadowed
m fiction. The weary, struggling,
lespairing, yet ever hopeful wards in
Jarndpce in Dickens story were no
more unfortunate and could have been
more right than he.
During all these weary years of liti-
cation and petitioning William Nc
Jarrahan was nOminally arraigned
against the United States Government.
That is to say, if the title to the
Panoche Grande. Ranch did not vest in
lim, as he claimed, it did vest in the
United States: Hence all his actions
we're brought against the United
States and his petitions made to
Congress.
Yet it was not the United States
hat really opposed him, The United
States courts three time affirmed his
tile to the land; congressional in
committees declared en-
in his favor, and various
officials of high degree who passed
lpon his claim expressed themselves
Is perfectly.satisfied with the clearnesS
# his title.
His real opponent was private cor
as the New Idria Min
ng Company, which squatted upon
lis land shortly after he purchased it
Ind has ever since been making
enormous profits out of the rich de-
,osits of quicksilver found beneath |
Is rocky surface.
1t is this squatting corporation that
;ept VIM. M. McGarrahan out of his
lights all these years. At every turn
he well-paid lawyers and agents of
he "New Idria" appear to combat him,
nd though he repeatedly won and re-
Won his title, a war of technically was
vaged upon him, and legal difficulties
urned up at every step, cunningly
evised, so as to block him and send
i'm again and again to the courts and
o Congress for help, When the COM
nittee appointed by the Fortieth Con-
.ress to investigate his claim made
Is report il called this company some
lard names. 1t alleged that the !