The Ketchikan miner., 1908-04-11
BEGIN SUITS


 The first of the governments active steps toward breaking the land grip of the Southern Pacific in Oregon is marked by the Fulton resolution. which passed in the senate recently directing the department of justice to begin court proceedings to enforce the rights of the United States. The railroad for nearly 10 years has ignor- ed important terms of the Oregon X California landgrants, that favored the public: namely, that the lands should be sold at a price not exceed ing B. 50 an acre, only to actual set tiers and in tracts of not more than l60 acres to each purchaser. These suits will involve close to 5000, GOO acres, he'd by the railroad and by persons who have bought from the railroad in violation of the terms oi the grant.
 The resolution also directs the de- partment of justice to start suits to enforce the rights of the United States as to the wagon road grant be- tween Coos Bay and Rose burg, were ?. GOO acres of land are held by the Southern Oregon conpany-a group of nonresident landlords, chiefly William w. Crapo, William !. Rotch, Elijah Smith, president, and Prosper W. Smith. These men are residents of New York and Boston. According to the terms ui ltis grant, made in 1868, the lands were to be sold for not more B. 5O an acre and in tracts of not more ih ,n l60 acres to each pur- chaser.
 Both the Southern ? ctic and the Southern Oregon compauies lefuse now to sell the lands ii $2. 59 ID acre. and the railtoal refuses tu sell at any price. Both companies have soid large areas n bulk, ignoring the l60- acre limit and prices frequently much in excess of S2 50 an acre. The railroad has made such sales Lo others than actual settlers.
 Suits against the two companies have aready been begun in the Unit ed States c,tcuit court by would-be purchasers. who offer 5. 50 an acre Fourteen suits have been filed against the raiilcad by A. w. Lafferty, at- torney for actual settlers against the Southern Org ,n, by T. $. AIinot, at- torney for 6j claimants of +, coo acres in Coos county, aad another of the same kind will shortly be filed for 10 other claimants. The Fulton resolu- tion is understood to have the sanc- tion of the administration and to have come orignaliy from B. D. Townsend. the special government attorney who probed the railroad grant last summer and fall Townsend believed reso- luton by congress necessary as pre- liminary to a government suit, since otherwise the government suit might be thrown out of court. This will ex- plain some part of the government delay in acting against the railroad and the Coos Bay company.
 The delay has made many persons impatient and caused them to wonder if the work of Townsend would end in any achievement Townsend seems to have been busy in Washington the last three or four months drafting the eovernmnt's bills of complaint.
 The governmnt will file against the railroad two sets of complants-one against the railroad and the other against owners of large holdings pur- chased from the railroad in violation of the terms of the grants. It is ex- pet ted to file two series of complaints against the Coos Bay company and holders of big tracts acquired from it's grant The suits in equity will ask either for forfeiture of the land re- maining in the railroads possession, or for decree ordering its sale by