Fort Worth gazette. [volume] (Fort Worth, Tex.) 1891-1898, 1894-03-09
GREER COUNTY,
in'rusions Made ny the Government
on the Rights Of the sta,o-rae
Case WIN Soon BE Taken
Up Again.
Up Again.

The famous Greer county case Is al.
ways interesting to Texans, ON account
oil the interesting points Of law involved.
II is 10 come mp again. and anything
reliable in regard to its present status.
with a brief but accurate resume of its
past history, Is not nopportune.
The attorneys OF the state consider the
claim OF Texas SO strongly supported by
evidence as hardly to admit Of doubt.
The recent yaporing in a New York
paper about the lands in controversy in
that case being covered by railroad
bonds which will oyerwheln the settlers
in that region il the state succeeds. is ms
silly as it is without the semblance of
truth. Those bond-covered lands are a
scare-crow 10 frighten the uuwary
IL seems that a Mr., Mooney has been
sent from Washington TO discover that
ashes in the old Indian camps under the
ellis OF Red river are only caye-dust "a
and tins Is deemed mater Of grave i'm
port IN reference TO the boundary
question by the wisencre who penned the
article referred to- But how this astute
discovery tonds in any manner to show
where tile Tooth meridian. as laid down
on Melish's map, is 10 be found on the
tace OF the olntry, II might take
Philadelphia lawyer 10 explain.
The line in dispute is line extending
from Red river to the Arkansas river,
which the treaty Of boundary defined 10
BE- the Tooth meridian Of west longitude.
as laid down on Melishs map That man
was map nf the United States pub.
lished in ISIS, and laid down" the
Tooth meridian as crossing the Arkansas
river at the Great bend and extending
southwark across what is now known as
Oklahoma, some forty miles east VI Greer
county. and intersectlng Red river fifty
or sixty miles below the forks OF that
river
The treaty gave 10 Texas, as the sue
cessor of Mexico aud Spain, all the coun-
try west Of that line and south Of the
Arkansas river as far as to the Rio
Grante II is moi pretended that the line
| referred to was the true Tooth meridian
II was not SO designated in the treaty
Ii was therein designated as the Tooth
meridian, as laid down In Melish's map
| The distance from IL. west 20 the easi
line Of the Panhandle Is SUPPOSED to be
about ninety miles, and this belt OF c0un-
| try extends north and south over 2O0
miles, and Is seemingly the property OF
Tev7s.
Greer county embraces not more than
| one tenth of il. Texas formerly claimed
and occupied the whole of it, and fought
some notable hnu'es with th' Indians
there But the old map on which the
| boundary line was marked grew ancient
/ and went out Of Use long before the
modern American went there to settle:
and when. In 1910. an effort was made
| 10 find copy oi 10, iu order 10 rnn a
| part Of the boundary. not one could be
| found Without the consent of Texas
| surveyors of the United States intruded
| upon this country and claimed n lin,
| farther west for the boundary, which
| they extended south of the north forl
1 of Red river. Texas WAS finally driver
! TO make a stand only for Greer county
which lies between the north and souil
forks. But in the absence of the oil,
man. her claim even for Greer county
was rendered doubtful.
Recently copy OF the old map wa
found in the department Of state Il
| Washington. and the right Of Texas Il
| this large csope Of country was at one
| evident upon it's face There are doubt
less other important facts bearing on III
| question. But the old map would seen
to be conclusive.
In 1850 the sute Of Texas sold 10 N
United States for SlOOOOOQO all ih
| country north and west Of tie ran
bundle to the Rio Grande,. Tho coumlr
| cnst of the Panhandle and extending q
tGe Tooth meridian OF Melish all the wa.
| het,yeen the two rivers, Arknnsas an
Red. a distance Of about ninety mue
east and west, ia the country dt
srrIbcd as belonging TO TcXns II en-
braces about 1900 square miles, on
Is worth perhaps SiQ,WNQOQ.
These facts are CLEANED from the r.
mort of the Texas boundary comminslo
nf 1896 which asserted the claim her
described AT the proper time the grea
| ,,,,es Of evidence since collected by ~