The Savannah morning news. (Savannah, Ga.) 1900-current, 1903-09-25
MILLIONS OF ACRES
.y RE FOUGHT FOR BY FLORIDA
AND RAILROADS.
pHoFLIGATE LEGISLATURES
GRANTED THEM TO RAILROADS
FOR BUILDING LINES.

dave Away More Land Than State
Possessed-State Now Owns Only
1000, 900 Acres in the Everglades.
Internal Improvement Fund Trus-
Louisville and Nashville Claims
One Million Acres and p. & A.
Three Times as Much.
Tallahassee, Fla, Sept. 24.-The trus-
fees of the Internal Improvement Fund
Of Florida find themselves in quite a
nredisament. The Louisville and Nash
Vile Railroad and other roads are SUI
ing them for several million acres of
land, granted the different companies
for the construction of railroads in this
state by the legislatures of the past.
The Louisville and Nashville claims
100000 acres, the P & A. wants
100000, and other roads want mill
lions more.
The state only owns about 100000
of acres of swamp and overlooked
lands in the Everglades, and this the
trustees refuse to give up, claiming
that the Legislature had no right to
grant lands in one part of the state
for the construction of a railroad in
another part. The legislatures in the
past have been very liberal in grant
ing lands to the railroads. All told, the
state has received in the neighborhood
of 100000 900 acres of swamp and over
flowed land from the United States
government. This has been frittered
away until only 100000 acres remain
in the Everglades.
In 1850 all the swamp and overflow
ed lands patented to the state by the
United States government was patent
ed to the trustees of the Internal I'M
provement Association, to be used ex-
Clusively for drainage and internal i'm
prOvements. Millions and millions of
acres have been given away to the
railroads. and not any of the lands
have been drained. Railroads were
given from 5000 to 10000 acres per
mile, until the Legislature granted
many millions more than the state
ever owned.
The land in the Everglades was only
recently patented to the state. yet the
railroads demanded that this be turned
over to them. The trustees refuse to
comply with these demands, claiming
that what now remains of the once
vast domains of the state can only be
used for the purpose for which it was
originally patented to the state. The
COURTS WIN be called upon TO settle
the controversy.
IN order to show the liberaIity dis
played by the average Legislature of
Florida, the action of the last assem-
bly, may be taken as a fair sample.
Il Ie1. to- 4n
the st. Andrews, Quincy and Northern
Railroad a small tract of 5000 acres
for each mile of road to be construct
ed This will call for about 100000
acres. 1t made a similar grant to the
Apalachicola and Northern Railroad
which will require another 100000 acres
1t extended the time allowed for the
construction and completion of the
Florida Coast Line Canal and Con-
struction Company from St. Augustine
to Biscayne Bay, and continued the
land grant. 1t did the same thing for
the Alafia, Manatee and Gulf Coast
Railway.
nese four grants alone would take
up the entire 5000. 900 acres yet in pos
session of the state, and still the Leg
islature making them passed law re-
curing the trustees of the Internal I'm
provement Fund to sell the swamp and
overlooked lands belonging to the state,
after all claims against it have been
settled. and then turn the money over
to the State Treasurer to be appor-
toned among the counties for the con-
struction of hard surfaced roads.
1t would take seven or eight millions
more acres than the state now owns
to settle these claims, and the trus-
tees propose to use the Everglades for
drainage purposes alone, unless the
court orders otherwise. The litigation
promises to last for years.