The herald., 1898-11-27
PURGAToRIE, NOT PICKET WIRE
A Judge Who Loved English Names
Misled by Pronunciation

In any case in Colorado courts involving
land titles much depends on derivation of
title from this or that Spanish grant. Soon
er or later this brings up metes and bounds
which are as Spanish and foreign as re-
cent war map. Wise lawyers having case
involving these particulars try to get it set
for hearing by some Judge other than Judge
Hallett, for he is known to have great dis
like to Spanish names and every other Span
ish thing.
In territorial days, when we had but re-
Gently been appointed to organize that cir
cult, he had to listen to a case which in
vOlved the ownership of nearly quarter of
the territory, all the land along the Arkansas
valley from the divide almost to the eastern
boundary line. Day after day he had to lis
ten to a recital of the positions of the var
ious floating and fixed grants included in
the litigated domain. 1t had none of the
simplicity of the checkerboard system of the
United States land office, where Twp. l
r. 8, Denver merid." establishes a definite
and fixed spot as to which there can be no
arguing. Instead of this the grant line be-
gan at Santa Maria and then trailed off to
San Juan, and then it cut off to SAINT 1ago,
and, before it was finished it had managed
to include fair share of the saints of the
calendar and more than a trife Of odds and
ends of theology. As saint succeeded saint
in the presentation of the case Judge Hal.
lett grew more and more irritable; still it
was impossible to leave out a single saint,
for broad acres and many dollars were de-
pending on just this proof of ownership
When it was felt that the judge had reached
the swapping point of nervous tension 4
lucky swing of the boundary line carried it
for few miles clear both of saints and
Spanish; on this stretch it was established
by the banks and channels of the Picket
Wire river. As soon as Judge Hallett caught
the name he frightened up and seemed to
take new and liveler interest in the case
Gentlemen" he said, at is relief to
come on a name like this among all this
Spanish lumber that ought to be swept off
our maps. Picket Wire, homely name, but
American. You can imagine the naming
Some hardy American is on his way over
these painless prairies. He camps along.
side the river, his rope is mislaid, he pickets
his horse with bit of wire as the next best
thing, the circumstances fixes the place in
his mind. That is the way American energy
names the country, every name has some
such little history; each is landmark to be
| respected"
After this burst of enthusiasm the bench
appeared puzzled. As the deimitation of
the boundary continued the Judge was seen
to be engaged in some sort of struggle with
the maps At last he interrupted the coun-
sci and said that he was forced to ask him
to point out the Picket Wire river, which
was not laid down on the map supplied the
court.
Counsel made haste to explain that the
name of the river was not pronounced as
it was spelled, and that he had employed
the common pronunciation.
$50 much the better" said Judge Halet.
testify. "How it may be with this Spanish
rubbish l don't know and don't care, but
in plain American name like this, there
is only the one way to pronounce it, Picket
Wire. Point it out on the map
Counsel touched his pencil to the map at
the name Purgatoire river, to which he had
given the pronunciation employed on the
plains. udge Hallett barked out, "The
court takes cognizance," and the case went
on.
As the judge had expressed himself in
terms of such enthusiastic appreciation of
the name OF the river as carrying the genu-
inc American ring to it, there was not a,
member of the bar who deemed it advisable
to instruct the court as to how the name
came to pass. The old French trappers of
that region of the Rockies had named the
river after the place which is between
heaven and hell. The American COWBOYS,
taking the name by way of the ear, did not
recognize it as Purgatory river, but settled
on Picket Wire as the nearest approach to
the sound they heard.-New York Sun.