Santa Fe daily New Mexican. [volume] (Santa Fe, N.M.) 1885-1897, 1894-03-03
REMARKABLE TRANSACTION.
Why the Secretary of the Interior
Orders a Resurvey of the Las
Vegas Land Grant.
Review of Ex-Surveyor General Ho-
bart's Work-Oficial and His
toric Data in a Com
plicated Case.

Surveyor General Easley is in receipt
of instructions under date of Washington
February 2, directing the resurvey CT the
Las Vegas grant, the same to be made in
the departmental decision of December
5, 1891.
The order brings to light some inter
esting history. The grant was made
March 20, 1885, by the territorial deputa-
ton, and was approved by the surveyor
general December, IS, 1858; was con-
frmed by congress, June 21, 1861, and a
preliminary survey made thereof by Pei
ham and Clements, U. $. deputy survey
ors, March 1861, and the grant as then
surveyed contained 496,446.9S acres. The
question as to
THE VALIDITY OF THIS SURVEY
and the correct location of the bounda-
ries came up in 1875, and an investiga-
ton was had and testimony submitted in
relation thereto.
On March 20, 1887. Surveyor Genera Ju-
liam called the attention OF the commission
er of the general land office to the incorrect
ness of the existing survey, and the COM
missioner authorized the execution of a
new survey. In pursuance OF this au-
thority, on June 20, 1887, instructions
were issued to special agent as to an
examination of the grant. The investi-
CATION was proceeded with, testimony of
witnesses taken at Las Vegas, and re-
port of said special agent was filed with
the United States surveyor general.
In November, 1887, notice of investiga-
ton and survey of the grant was issued
and Special Agent R. B. Rice was appoint
ed to make such investigation. This in
vestigation consisted of an examination
of the records as to the allotments made
under said grant and preliminary sur
vey of such allotments as were found by
said R. B. Rice to be valid, and the sur
veys then executed by him were not in
tended to be regular survey of said
allotments, but were simply made in con
nection with his investigation to deter
mine the
|
Before completing this investigation
and concluding preliminary survey Of
all the allotments alleged to have beer
made under said grant, the funds appro
priated for that purpose were exhausted
and the investigation was suspended fol
lack of means with which to continue
such investigation, but the field notes o.
the preliminary survey, and abstract Of
title to the various allotments within the
grant, together with affidavits as to the
validity and extent of the allotments
were filed by Mr.. Rice in the surveyor
generals office. This was the extent O.
the investigation in the field; but al
stated by Mr.. Rice, in a report subse
quantly filed, there were number o
allotments which we're alleged to be valic
that were not investigated, and no prelin
mary survey was made of the same.
After the decision was rendered by See
Rotary Noble on December 5, 1891, in
which he held that the said grant was
only valid to the
| EXTENT OF THE ALLoTMENTs
that were made from time to time by the
| CONSTITUTIONAL alCalQe TO various SeLJlert
residing upon lands within said gram
between 1885 and 1913, field notes of tho
survey of the allotments under said gran,
were prepared from the field notes of the
preliminary survey made in connection
with Rice's investigation, and plat Of
said allotments was prepared under the
direction of Surveyor General Hobart
and the said field notes and plat was duly
approved by him on June l, 1898, as 6
survey of said grant made SO as to in
clude only the lands which had been allot
ted or asslgnedto settlers under the terms
of the original concession at the time that
the territory of New Mexico became sub
| 1ect to the laws of the United States. Or
June 2, 1898, a transcript of the fielG
notes and plat of the surveys executed
by said Rice were duly transmitted to the
general land Office, and on June 8, 1898, {
contract was let by said Surveyor General
Hobart for an extension of the public
survey over all of the lands not included
in said allotments, and therefore included
in the Las Vegas grant survey as estab
| lished in 1861.