Little Falls herald. [volume] (Little Falls, Morrison County, Minn.) 1889-1950, 1903-08-07
INDEMNITY lands.
BRAINERD PAPER ..SAYS SOME
SETTLERS MAY LOSE.

county are facing predicamen,
which looks very much like con.
6scation of the. land they have pur.
chased in good faith and every reason
to believe belonging to them. The
Crow Wing county lands involved
number between eight and ten thou
sand acres and the adjoining county
Of Morrison has even more. It is in
possible to tell just how many pur'
chasers there are If these lands but in
this county they must number be.
tween thirty and forty.
The game that is being worked,
that may bring about this condscation'
is an extraordinarily complicated one,
having it's inception in the land
grants that he state of Minnesota has
been responsible for. 1t was not
possible for the game 10 be in sight at
the time the land was scld by the
railroad company but condition
has arisen which enables one rail-
road company to avoid the obligations
of it's predecessor and from all ap-
pearances in this particular instance
the opportu nifty is not to be allowed
to 90 by default. The story of each
purchaser is the story of all the pur-
chssers 80 but one instance will be
cited and it is as follows:
In 1897 P. Nj. Zakariasen made ap-
plication to the St. Paul and North
ern Pacific Railroad Co.. to purchase
eighty acres of it's land that was
thrown upon the market about that
time at the price of 81 per acre. It
was understood that the company did
not have title to the land it was
selling at the time but it accepted a
deposit signed by F. W. Wilsey,
representing the railroad company,
showing that when the title was re-
quired and upon the payment of
balance or the purchase price, q deed
would be given the purchaser. Since
that time the matter has rested and
Mr.. Zakariasen, in common with the
others, was satisfied with the fact
that the land was rising in value and
the day must come when he would
get deed for the land purchased.
But under date Of July %, 1903,
Mr.. Zakariasen received q letter from
the same F. W. Wilsey, now assistant
land commissioner for the Northern
Pacific Railway company, stating
among other things that that COM
pany had received title to the lands
he purchased C'ntinuing the letter
he says: "In November 1897 this
company issued permit to you grant
ing you the privilege of entering
upon the premises and improving the
same. Examination Of the lands,
however, shows that no improvements
are located thereon, and you are there
fore notified that said permit is of no
effect and will not be recognized by
this department.
II Am, however, willing to give
you the first opportunity to purchase,
at the present market value, which is
$40 per acre and will credit you with
the amount you have paid on the
down payment
In a simple language it means that
lands purchased from the Northern
Pacific's predecessor, in good faith,
at 81 per acre, deeds can now be had
for $40 per acre and the former pur-
chasefs are generously given the first
opportunity to pay the railway COM
pany the increased valuation of the
lands. Among the parties who are
up against this proposition are Mr..
Zakariasen, J. NJ. Elder, who have
about Is, 600 acres of land and G. A.
Walre, who has a section of it. There
are others.
The condition which leads up to the
ability Of the Northern Pacific to resell
thousands Of acres OF its lands at an
increased profit of So per acre, is not
so easily understood but there IL
probably no question but that the
company will make the original pur-
chasers 90 through the courts to get
title of their lands. It seems that. in
the years gone by, the state had set
apart certain lands to be granted to
railroad companies to encourage
building. Among the building com,
panies was the Saltwater, st. Paul
& st. Anthony. This road changed
it's name several times as it branched
out until finally it reached Brainerd
and was known as the St. Paul &
Northern Pacific railroad company.
Its land grant, or the land it was en-.
titled to, was embraced within a
twenty mile limit on either side Of
the road or right CT way. When the
road got into the northern part Of
MOrric0n on1 ;rfo C~o.v w:-- o>..s