The Virginia enterprise. [volume] (Virginia, St. Louis County, Minn.) 1893-19??, 1900-07-27

PIC L. 1,OA1x JcOISc ~. ROD1nSOn
and Elisha HI. Finn, who derive IT,
tie through conveyance from the
patentees; that neither the Govern
ment of the United States nor the
settlers have any claim to any por-
ton of this land; that the fractional
lots as delineated on the Govern
ment plat extend to the actual wat
ers of the lake, and the actual wat
ers of the lake constitute a boundary
of such lots.
The following is brief history of
this interesting case, affecting lands
with which range people are famil-
lar, and the principal facts relating
thereto:
In 1876 this township was survey
ed by the Government of the United
States, and from such survey a plat
of the township was made, approx
ed by the Government and filed in
the General Land Office of the Unit
ed States and in the local land office
at Duluth.
The survey was erroneous, there
being large number of permanent
lakes In the township not shown on
the official plat but appearing there
on az land, portion of which was
purchased by complainants, and
Ely Lake itself actually containing
an area of about OOacres instead of
1900 acres, as described in the field
notes of the survey and as shown
on the plat.
Before the commencement of this
suit all of the land in this township
had been sold by the Government.
Mr.. Murphy and his associates were
the purchasers of most of the lands
surrounding Ely lake. They pur-
chased it for the pine timber stand
ing on the land, Oh an actual esti-
mate of the same extending to the
actual waters of the lake, and to fa-
cilitate IT, herring operations of this
and Sui 4nding tracts of pine tim
Der ow1%l by them by using the
waters <1the lake, paying the high
est market price therefor, and hav-
ing no knowledge of any fraud or
inaccuracy in the survey or in the
plat of the land The land was pur-
chased by them during the years
1882 and 1883. Their title was undis-
puted until along in 1891, when GER
tain individuals, having knowledge
of the it1&Sf>:nracies iii, thessuryey Jof
the township, settled on portions OF
this land adjacent to the waters OF
Ely lake, claiming it to be Govern
ment land, and made an application
to the United States Surveyor Gen
eral for this district to have the
same surveyed. This application
was opposed by Messrs. Murphy
Dorr and others, but the Interior
Department finally ordered the sur:
vey. The complainants thereupon
on the seventh day of January, 1897
obtained a temporary injunction in
this action, after full hearing in
which the Government and the set
tiers were heard by counsel. The
order for this injunction was ap.
Pealed from by the Government tc
the United States Circuit Court OF
Appeals for this circuit, and the or
der was there affirmed. The Gov
ernment thereupon appealed to the
Supreme Court of the Unitee States
and it's appeal was dismissed. The
case wassthen tried on it's merits. A
large amount of evidence was taken
4 on, the part of the Complainants, Mr.
Murphy and associates, and also
on the part of the Government This
evidence, with the pleadings in the
case, fills book Of solid printed
matter containing 328 pages.
The case was argued on it's merits
early in December last, before Judge
Lochren. The opinion filed by him
is very exhaustive and a clear state
ment of the law. He holds that Mr.
Murphy and his associates purchas
ed this land in good faith, relying
on the Government plat, with NJ
knowledge of any inaccuracy in thu
survey or in the plat, and paying
full value for the land and for thu
riparian rights thereto. HI
lays it down as legal proposition
that when the Government, through
it's agents and employees, offers fo1
sale and sells it's lands, if it's agents
are negligent or unfaithful and {
loss to the Government results, i
cannot shift that loss upon an limo
cent purchaser who has bought anc
received title upon the representa-
ton of the plats prepared by thu
Government, according to which thu
land has been offered for sale anc
the sale is made. He holds further
citing a'1arge numb ber of cases de
cided by the Supreme Courts of tn
United States and OF this and othe
Ir~- 4~~ IL L