The Kootenai herald. [volume] (Kootenai, Idaho) 1891-1904, 1896-12-19
BLOODY HISTORY OF A DONATION
CLAIM IN KING COUNTY.
Thousands of Dollars Expended in
Lawsuits Engendered by the
Bitter Feud.

August t. 1896, awarding to the heirs of
Michael Connel the fine farm of 800 acres
of rich prairie land in the northeastern
part of King county, known as Michael
Connens donation claim, or more IA
miliarly, as "Connell's prairie" 1t is also
learned that John A. Stone had last
month filed protest against the issuance
of patent to ConneEls heirs, and that Sec
rotary Francis had just overruled the
protest.
This would seem to be the closing chap
ter in a tragical drama of Indian wars,
business disputes, conflicts, law suits and |
killings. says the Seattle Post-Intelligen-
Ger. Three men have lost their lives over |
this farm, and many thousands of dollars |
have been spent in litigation to establish |
a good title to it.
Michael Connell was a native of the |
county of Glare, in Ireland, and came in
his youth to the United States. He wan
dered to this coast, and in 1854 awaited
himself of the benefits CD of the Ore
gon Donation Act" by settling upon the
prairie which has ever since borne his
name. In defending his new possession
against the hostile Indians he was slain,
and as he had not been in possession OF
the place for the full four years required
by that act before final proof could be
made, and was a single man without any
relatives in this country so far as
known, the land remained in the condition
of an unprotected claim, with no heirs to
take up the thread of settlement and cul-
tivation where it had been left by the
young pioneer who had fallen in the wan
with the Indians. A neighboring settler,
who had rendered some assistance to Con-
nell in starting the ranch, applied TO the
hot Of n, 1att
of administration, and in due time chat
court mot regarding its want of jurisdic-
ton in the matter) caused the land to re
sold for the payment of Connells debts,
and the title conveyed to the purchaser.
The sale was of course void, but nobody
seemed at the time to think so. Such title
as there was to the land passed in time to
| James G. Williams, whose tenure was as
brief as Connells, and as fatal, for he was
| killed by some unknown person while On
| his way from Puyallup to the prairie. II
was generally supposed that disputes
which had arisen out of the unsettled
condition of the place were responsible
for the killing of Williams, whom old set
tiers in the Puyallup valley will remcm-
Der by his uncomplimentary sobriquet of
Hog" Williams.
After the death of the second victim of
this Inflated land, coincident as it was
with the rapid development of the hop in
dustry in the Puyallup and Stuck valleys,
and the proved fitness of Connels prairie
for that alluring crop, the plot perceptibly
thickens. Intelligent, strong-willed and
persistent men appear upon the scene and
take a hand in the struggle for the rich
and valuable hop ranch. Mr.. Whittlesey,
then carrying on a real estate and alb
| h,,c in
with his attorney Warren b. Hooker
then of the law firm of Hooker &c Ashton
and now the chairman of the rivers ano
harbors committee in the lower house OF
congress, whose support of the appropri
alton for the North canal turned The
scales in its favor, and each applied fol
2 100 acres of land under the homestead
law Meanwhile the probate court title
passed to William M. White, who gave {
mortgage for $24OO upon the Council claim
l and upon the adjoining Williamson dona
, ton claim.
White had fallen out with James Nc
MILAN, a stcrekeeper at Sumner, one o
the best known and most respected mel
In Pierce county, and as they both wer
strong, willful, uncompromising men, tn
i quarrel developed into bitter feud Nc
i MILAN contrived to acquire the Whit
mortgage and proceeded to foreclose il
This, of course, increased the bitterness
and dire threats were made by eac
: against the other Their attorneys i
spite of strong opposition from the eli
: ents, secured temporary truce an
: made arrangements for the redemption G
Il the land by White within a given tins
{ Whites attorneys procured the none
and were about to pay on the mortgag
- debt when 1t was discovered that Mo
MILAN who was drifting into troubl
:, with his creditors, had transferred all n
interest in the land to his father. tn
creditors attached the land and tied u
the money in the hands of White and n
attorneys. This brought negotiations
4 a standstill. After further futile htigi
n ton, in which McMillan's creditors pre-
vented a settlement, the hay crop of IS
a became a new bone of contention p
r tween White and Mcmillan. White VIZ
a in possession and he raised the crop; Nj
MILAN had declared that he would "haN
Is the hay or Blood" and White, hearing
I'd this declaration, retorted that if McMilla
at made the attempt somebody would "g
m hurt"
lie Mcmillan, armed with rifle and a rev.
lie YER started on July II from Sumner wi
In his moving machine, etc, and proceed
Sc to cut the hay. White was told by one
his sons that Mcmillan was cutting q
= hay Putting a small pistol in his pock'
White went to the scene of operations al
asked Mcmillan whether he had sheriff
g. papers or any other authority for takii
possession and cutting the hay. Pic
up his rifle and pointing 1t at White al
directing the latters attention to 1t, M
MILAN answered: This is my authority