The Wichita daily eagle. [volume] (Wichita, Kan.) 1890-1906, 1901-10-30
is IN COURT AGAIN
There Is Another Fight Over
Swans Island.
WANT TO QUIET TITLE
How Governor Stanley Won
Case for Swan.

Swans island was n the district cour,
again yesterday. This time it was a suit
brought by E. Bronston who bought the
island from Swan TO quiet title.
A. E. Helm was the attorney for Bron-
ston and s. W. Shattuck. Jr., appeared
for Henry Burns, who claimed twelve
acres of the island and had It fenced in.
The court held that man must be in
possession when he comes to quiet title
and the title to all bur the twelve acres
was Quoted and it is supposed now that
it VIII stay quoted until somebody dis
turbs it.
Mr.. Helm Immediately fled another
suit against Burns for the possession of
the dozen acres and at the January term
of court the Swan island will be in the
district court again.
Nelson Swan, the original owner OK the
island, and for whom it is named. is an
old colored man. Along in the early 20 5
Mr.. Swan found an island in the big Ar
kansas river about ten miles above this
city. lie ella n ed ii. He settled on It and
finally got the government 10 survey it
and allow him TO obtain title for it.
About three years ago some of the a-is-
tocratic farmers in that section claimed
the old colored mans land on the theory
that it had never been an island and
belonged to them as accretions to their
lands.
Then there was a big fight in the dis
trict court The old settlers who had
killed rattlesnakes and swore at the
grasshoppers and held prayer meetings
in 1874 TO pray the little pests out of the
state, stayed by the old colored man to
a finish.
At that time Governor Stanley was
making the fight to retain Swan on the
island. 1t was essential for him to show
that the raging "Rackensack' was a rip
ties and when the trial came off all the
chairs in the space reserved for sttor-
neys. were occupied by old settlers.
They told some wonderful stories about
the Big Arkansas and they were all true.
If they did seem fshy to the tenderfeet,
who had viewed the streak Of sand since
Colorado went into the irrigation bust
ness but which streak Of sand is still
called the Big Arkansas river.
The old settlers said the Arkansas at
that time was navigable river and they
told how, when Tom Ryan was in con-
gress, he had secured an appropriation
for the purpose of improving the river
and the government only made appro-
priations to improve navigable streams.
Some of them even remembered TO that
day. that John Martin, Of this city. had
Joined the fleet that sailed down the river
to improve it, and that after the fleet had
eaten up the appropriation it returned to
this city without the loss of a single man.
The other side weakened this evidence
somewhat by showing that Ryan's APP
did not apply to the river
above this city. but the jury found that
If the river was not navigable above
Wichita, it ought to have been and 1t
gave the land to Mr.. Swan. to the great
delight Of all the old settlers.
The man or men who ever undertake
to tackle Swans island to question the
right of the people who obtained title
from Mr.. Swan, will simply hnd them
selves humping their head against a
stone wall as solid as the Rocky noun
tains.
It was Swans land and ali the old set
tiers have said It.