Evening times-Republican. [volume] (Marshalltown, Iowa) 1890-1923, 1905-03-27
Alleged That Iowa University
Might Have Had More Than
$5,OOO,OOO Fund
LANDS WERE SOLD FOR A SONG
Money Derived From Their Sale
Amounts to 1926, 12o.3e, While Today
s5oooooo Would Not Purchase the
Lands Which Seen, to Have Been so
Eagerly Sacrificed.
observation-disclosures:

| 900, With an annual lHSoihe VI ''Ssf' y
5000, 900 in place of the present ehdow-
ment fund of $2S5,000, and an amman
income therefrom Of possibly $4,000,
is the remarkable ract alleged as the
result of an investigation into the his
tory cr the disposal of the early land
grants of the state upon which the
institution was founded. According
to it. instead of being practically de-
| pendent on the bounty of the lcg1sla-
| ture, before which representatives OF
! the institution have been forced to
make a biennial appearance in 81 quest
for funds. the university might have
been practically n self supporting IN
stitution and undoubtedly one of the
richest state universities In the west
| Under the federal ordinance of 1881.
two townships of land in every state
| thereafter to be created, were set aside
as an endowment for state univer-
sity This liberal appropriation was
made aside from the land endowment
| made for the public school education
| Obedient to the requirements of the
| state constitution, which was adopted
| Dec IS. 1876, the first general assem-
| bly, OF the state passed an act to To-
cate and establish n state university.
Section three of this act donates to the
| university the congressional grant of
| two townships of land. The board OF
| trustees were elected by the assembly.
but delay in the selection of lands left
them without means Of support, while
the delay in moving the capital from
Iowa City left them without buildings.
For seven years they had little to do
except to secure the selection Of lands
ard provide for their sale. though the
first sale was not made until 1851.
While the original act contemplated
the selection of 46,0S0 acres. several
fractional sections appeared more de-
sirable than full sections and were taken
instead AS result the university re-
ceived 46,520.61 acres. which was Sc
lected by the first commissioners, Will
lam w. Dodge and John NJ Whitaker
The land was selected in the counties
of Appanoose, Boone Davis, Dallas,
Decatur, Hardin, Iowa, Jasper, JEFF
ferson. Lucas, Polk, Scott Story,
oiiioi, NdpSllo, anu WaTTen.
The lands which were selected were
of good quality, though as y usual
thing they We're the timber lands To-
Gated along the rivers and streams of
the country. The money derived from
the sale of these lands, which has
been kept undisiurbed in a permanent
fund, amounts to 1896, sc. The story
of the disposal of this magnificent en-
dowment marks one of the darkest
periods in the early history of the
state. Unable or unwilling TO realize
that they had 8. sacred trus. to per-
form the trustees are charged with
ruthlessly sacrificing the future inter-
ests of the state institution for the in
terest OF the counties in which the
lands lay, or even worse, for the mem
bers of the legislature and their
friends.
They appraised the lands on June
27 1851, at minimum price of SIS per
acre and at the first sale November
l. 1851, 645 acres We're sold at S5.O5
per acre, and shortly after IL tract of
forty acres sold at SIS per acre. BY
vote on February %, 1852, the trustees
raised the minimum price to $40 per
acre. The question of the responsible
ity for this action has been often dis
cussed. 1t has been claimed that it
was due to an act of the legislature
demanding that the lands be brought
into the market from which they had
been practically Withdrawn by the $40
minimum. But the reduction was made
long before the act In question was
passed. On February z, 1854, the trus-
tees were considering the question of
opening the university to students.
They decided that larger Income was
needed, and appointed one of their
number, the late DR.. M j. Morsman.
to make a personal investigation of
these lands and divide them into par
GELS so that they might be sold to the
best advantage. The unsold lands
were then appraised at a minimum of
1854 cents per acre and during that
year 9,782 acres were sold at an aver
age of 1912 per acre.
Sale to souatters by board Of ap-
praisement disposed of 2,280 acres at
an average of $3.50 per acre. Reasons
have been urged that it was necessary
to open the university as soon as pos |
slble, that the counties needed the |
lands which had been reserved. etc.
UuC I!lcSe uO llOl seem TO Satisfy.
The most remarkable sc enc in this |
alleged riot of graft was enacted in |
June, 1855. A sale had been adver-
tised the previous January to be held
in Iowa City, to dispose of the rs. 900
acres yet remaining. It lasted four |
days and at its end 1880 acres had |
been sold, of which 11,036 acres were
purchased by five members of the
board of trustees and 1000 acres We're |
purchased by man who had been a |
member and who was shortly after
ward elected. One incident of the sale |
was thought worthy of notice On one |
day a trustee bid in tract of $50 acres
for about $3.50 and Immediately for
feited the same. He bought the next |
day for 1851 A howl Immediately |
arose from purchasing trustees |
and the legislature declared the sale |
to trustees null and void But their
friends had already reaped a rich har-
vest and the damage had been done; |
$1,000 acres have been disposed of at |
an average price of 1882 per acre. Six
years later such lands sold readily at |
SIS per acre. Less than 80 per cent |
of the magnificent land grant, the en-
dowment of the state university of |
Iowa, remained awaiting higher pric-
es. Today 100000 would not pur-
chase the lands so eagerly sacrificed,
and the university is a Cienendent on
the bounty of the legislature.