Daily Kennebec journal. [microfilm reel] (Augusta, Me.) 1870-1975, 1906-06-02

pose. The securities belonging to the
| department may then very properly be
| passed over to the treasurer of State,
and the care of the reserved lots to the
| Governor and Council, or some other
| department of the State government.
| and the valuable records of the office
to the secretary of State
Commenting upon this in his mes
sage of January s. 1874, Governor Ding
| ley said:
| 1.-The Land Agent reports that the af-
| fairs of his office are being so rapidly
| closed up, that within two years, at
least. such incOnsiderable State inter-
ests as remain may be transferred to
the care Of the Secretary of State and
State Treasurer, and the once impOr-
tant land department of the State gov
| eminent be discontinued. This will
nocessitate legislation authorizing the
Land Agent to select and reserve such
norton of the 114,OOO acres set apart for
settlement as may be suitable for that
purpose, and to sell the remainder;
and also to dispose of the so $50 acres of
school land, and the timber on the ten
townships reserved in the grant to the
|
road This railroad grant included
not far from 100000 acres. valued at
| more than $780, 600 and is nearly all
still held by the road, although mort
gagged to secure the payment of their
bcnls. 1t is of the highest importance
| TO the State. that 50 much OF these
lands as we'll as of other immense
| tracts Of land within the State now
| held by prOprictOrS, as is suitable Tor
| settlement should be placed within the
reach Of settlers on the most Favorable
| terms. 1t is too late now to correct
The wasteful policy under which the
| magnificent domain which the State
nossassed half century since, has dis
| onneared, vet much may be done to
| remedy evils that arise from the lock-
ing up of large tracts of settling lands
| which would otherwise be improved.
While the Land Agent did not feel
| that the affairs of his office were IN
condition to warrant its Immediate dis
continuance believing that, under the
most favorable conditions, a few more
wears would be needed to wind up its
affairs the legislature was not disposed
| to take this view of the matter. A
| Joint special committee was appointed.
consisting Of seven on the part of the
House and three on the part of the
Senate, ITO inquire into and report at
an early date whether the office ot
Land Agent may not be abolished
without detriment to the interests of
the state"
The Land Agent, Parker p. Burleigh
urged upon this committee the reasons
why he thought that it would not be
good public policy to abolish the land
office at that time. These views he
published at length i'm his report of
the same year $50 under the caption
"Resolve Abolishing Land Office" as
follows:
'"rne Legislature having by resolve
of March 4, 1874, decided to abolish the
office of Land Agent without making
any specific provision for closing its
business or transferring it to any other
department, an important work seems
to be devolved upon the present legis-
lature to make provision to meet this
new order Of things. The Office being
one recognized and established by the
Constitution. it would seem that the
resolve might be objectionable on this
account as it now reads, though the
power to regulate its duties and sal
airy may without question be within its
control. Should, however, the sub
stance of the resolve be re-enacte1, it
will then become a matter of very
great question and Importance to de-
termine how the want now supplied by
that department shall be served in flu
ture. In anticipation of this state of
things the following suggestions are
volunteered:
I-RECORDS AND ARCHIVES.
1.-THE Land Office has now been in
operation for more than half a century.
during which time more than half the
territory of the State has been con-
vtyed by deeds emanating from it or
the Land Office of Massachusetts to
the extent of many millions of acres.
The original field-notes of surveys and
plans of these lands are largely now Oh
deposit in this office, the Legislature of
Massachusetts having literally dOnat
ed to this State the valuable records in
its possession from the earliest period
of it's history. pertaining to our terri
tory. And not only are the original
muniments of title to these LANDS thus
conveyed to be found here, but very
largely those of other lands in all parts
of the State. In very numerous cases
all over the State. it is in the Land
Office alone that the correct Informal
ton can be obtained relative to
boundaries and monuments both of
townships, tracts and single farms and
lots of land. Hence il is that con-
slant application is made for Informal
ton in relation to these facts both i'm
person and by mail to the number of
hundreds every year. This information
the Land Agents have ever held them
selves ready to give as a part Of their
official duty and free from payment of
fees. This state of facts suggests
several important duties to be per-
formed. if the Land Office is to be dis
pensed with or abolished
"1-Immediate steps should be taken
to preserve and arrange these records.
plans and field-notes so as to make
them available and secure their future
safety. Their value is too great to be
estimated or compared with gold or
silver, for these can never replace them |