Santa Fe daily New Mexican. [volume] (Santa Fe, N.M.) 1885-1897, 1896-10-08
U. S. LAND COURT.
Transactions Of the Court as Reported
by u. =. Attorney Reynolds to the
Attorney q eneral- Cases
Disposed OF.

Hon. Matt G. Reynolds, attorney for
the United States court of private land
claims, recently submitted to the attorney
general his annual report of the transac-
tions of the court named for the year end.
ed September s, 1896. From advance
sheets thereof the New MEXICAN makes
the subjoined extracts:
"Since my last annual report the num-
Der of cases disposed of has Lot been as
great as had anticipated but the result
of the work done upon the cases remain
ing on the docket will enable the work to
be rapidly completed provided the claim
ants in the cases can be forced to trial.
"During the last term of court which
has just adjourned, sixty-fve cases we're
on the docket and after preparing them
all for trial large number of them were
compelled to be continued under a ruling
of the court constituting the sixth section
of the act which requires that a copy of
the petition, together with citation, be
served upon any adverse possessor or
claimant of the property for which con-
firmation of title is sought.
"Grant claimants as rule have avoided
this provision of the statute or neglected
to provide for it, and the court made a
peremptory order in all such cases, that
claimants should comply with this pro-
vision of the statute before their cases
could be tried.
"In order that this construction of the
statute might be complied with, claim
ants were ordered to bring in by process
adverse possessors and claimants. Some
delay in the early part of the year was
occasioned by the court expecting that
the supreme court would advance some of
the cases from this territory and by
waiting for the same large number of
appeals could be avoided and the work
very much more rapidly done. However,
the business of the Office is in very good
shape and these delays have not delayed
the office in the preparation of the cases
as we are able to take them up on the
docket, and 80 far as the preparation for
trial Of cases is concerned, this office is
very much ahead of the other work of
the courts
"The final judgments of area claimed in
New Mexico is 452,132 acres; area con.
firmed in New Mexico, 126,423 acres;
area rejected in New Mexico, 5,7O9
acres; area claimed in Arizona, 2O2, 1853
acres; area confirmed in Arizona, 1896
acres; area rejected in Arizona, 1856, 467
acres."
Mr.. Reynolds continues that a number
of other cases have been tried and sub
mitted; that testimony has been taken in
a number of other cases, which are ready
for argument; that the technical yet very
important work of examining the surveys
of confirmed grants has imposed much
labor on his Office; that eleven of these
surveys were approved and two set aside
and new surveys ordered on the ground
that they did not conform to the DEGREES.
In conclusion Mr.. Reynolds says "Since
my last annual report, in the case of James
Addison Peralta-Reavis and wife vs.. Unit
ed States, appeal was taken and transcript
sent to the clerk of the supreme court of
the United States, but the same was dis
missed for failure to docket and the judy
ment of the court of private land claims
in that has become final.
II take this opportunity of commend
ing to You the employees of this Office as
having been energetic and faithful in the
performance of their duties.
"Mr. William H. Pope, who was ap-
pointed the successor of Mr.. Summers
Burkhart, came Immediately into the Of
flee, and l am very much gratifed to say
that his work has been excellently done,
and the judges of the court took occasion
to congratulate me, after their adjourn
ment, upon the fortunate appointment of
the assistant in this Office"
Annexed to the report is the following
list of cases in the New Mexico district
decided in the U. s. court of private land
claims between June 30, 1895, and Sep
TENDER 5, 1896: