The L'Anse sentinel. (L'Anse, L.S., Mich.) 18??-current, 1894-09-22

enormously cancelled because Of railroad
grants or Withdrawals and section four Is
as follows:
That as to all lands, except those mem
toned In the foregoing section. which
have been enormously certified or paten-
ted as aforesaid, and which have been
cold by the grantee company to citizens
of the United States, or to persons who
have declared their intention to become
such citizens, the person or persons so
purchasing In good faith, his heirs or
assigns, shall be entitled TO the land SO
purchased, upon making proof Of the
| fact OF such purchase at the proper land
office, within such time and under such
rules as may be prescribed by the secre-
tary OF the interior. after the grants re-
spectiyely shall have been adjusted; and
patents OF the United States shall Issue
therefor. and shall relate back to the
date of the original certification or pat
| enting, aud the secretary OF the interior,
on behalf of the United States, shall de-
mand payment from the company which
has so disposed Of such lands OF an
amount equal to the government price OF
similar lands; and In case of neglect or
| refusal Of such company to make pay
ment as hereafter specified, within ninety
DAYS after the demand shall have been
made, the encouragement shall cause
suit or suits to be brought against such
company for the said amount; Pr0Utdcd,
| That nothing I'm this act shall prevent
any purchaser Of lands enormously with
drawn, certified, or patented az aforesaid
from recovering the purchase money
therefor from the grantee company, less
the amount paid to the United States by
such company as by this act required;
And provided, That q mortgage or pledge
of said lands by the company shall not
be considered as sale for the purpose OF
this act, nor shall this act be construed
as a declaration OF forfeiture of any por-
ton of any land grant for conditions
broken, or as authorizing an entry for
| the same, or as q waiver OF any rights
that the United States may have on
account of any breach Of said conditions.
Section FIVE protects purchasers from
company Of lands, coterminous with con-
| structed roads, and OF the designated
sections granted, but which lands for
any reason are excepted from the opera
ton Of the grant.
This adjustm't act is a measure intended
to protect tive classes, viz: bona..fdc set
1
and purchasers from grantee companies
Of lands which 1t was believed that they
had right to sell, though in fact no
such right existed.
Its intent is to relieve from loss settlers
aud bona. tide purchasers, who, through
the erroneous or wrongful disposition Of
the lands in the grants by the officers Of
the government, or by the railroads,
have lost their rights or acquired equities
which in Justice should be recognized.
That the selection sold by the railroad
company shall have been approved, is
not required by the fifth section, nor
that 1t shall have been patented. That
the land shall have been approved TO the
company before the purchasers shall he
entitled to the benefit OF the sixth sec
ton, Is not required. ~ The
whole remedial part of the law was pass
ed with q recognition of the tact that the
railroad companies had sold lands TO
which they had no just claim.
1t is not required that the sale oy the
rail road, com panies shall Fave been made
on its part in good faith, but only the
purchaser shall have bought In good
faith. That II was sold under claim OF
a grant to another IN good faith is the
ground of his equity. Opinion OF Attor-
ney-General Garland, 6 l.. d., 273.)
These views of the attorney general,
as to the proper construction to be placed
upon the provisions Of said act, and its
purposes, are believed to be correct, have
been accepted and acted upon by this de-
partmentin number Of instances. This
being so, IL is apparent that the lands
here In controversy are In the exact cat
egory OF lands, the purchase OF which, 1t
Is contemplated, is to be confirmed by
the provisions OF section four.
They are lands which, II now appears,
upon the establishment Of the end lines
of the road, were unearRed and certified
and therefore enormously certified"
"for the use aud benefit" Of the railroad
under a grant from the United States;
and they ''have been sold by the grantee
company" Drake ct al v. Button, IA
l.. d., Is, 49, 1t follows, then, that TN
less there be some other objection. the
purchaser, upon meeting the other re-
auirments OF the law, would be entitled
to the land and o patent therefor from
the United States at the proper time.
One of the essential reQuirments Is
that the purchase must have been made
in good faith on the part OF the buyer.
Though bad faith were shown on the
part OF the vend0T III WOulu not ueIeat the
confirmation under the act, II the pur-
chaser acted In good faith. Therefore
the contention that the railroad company
has already received more lands than It
is entitled to can have no fierce in this
respect. (See attorney generals opinion.
supra. and IL l.. D., $780, In this par
ticular case do not think the good faith
Of the purchaser can be in any way i'm
pugned.
The donation to the state was made by
a present grant, upon the definite leca-
ton OF the line of road the lands tberooy
granted we're identified, and the title
thereto became vested In the beneficiary,
subject only to be defeated by subse-
quept failure on It's part TO comply with
the conditions Of the grant. (Scbulen-
berg y. Hartman, 81 Wall, A; Railroad
company v. Baldwin. 104 u. s., 426, 429.)
The definite location was made In 1859,
and the land authorities n 1850 certified
the lands in question as part of those
granted to the company; the road far as
| L'Anss was completed In the time requir-
ed by law and thereafter the state paten-
ted these lands, with others, to the COM