East Oregonian : E.O. (Pendleton, OR) 1888-current, 1908-04-27

Within the next 60 days, probabl.
much sooner, the government and tn,
Oregon G. California railroad com
pany will be locking horns over tn,
possession of the unsold portion e.,
100000 acres) In the lands granted
to the company in the acts OF con
gress in 1856 and 1859 The battle
will be waged In the federal courts
In the Oregon district, in other words
the issue will be Joined In Portland.
B. d. Townsend, the special agent
OF the interior department, who made
an exhaustive investigation OF the
grants and who drew up the Fulton
resolution, will come to Portland
within the next 80 days and prepare
TO institute proceedings against the
corporation on behalf Of the govern
ment. The Fulton resolution was
passed by the house Saturday by an
overwhelming majority, and will be
signed by the president within the
next few days. AS soon as that has
been done, the government will pro-
ceed Immediately with legal action.
Private advices received in Port
land this morning are to the effect
that Mr.. Townsend has practically
drafted the petition which will be
filed here shortly after his arrival
The petition will be a bill In equity
asking the federal court to declare
the unsold portion OF the o. & c. grant
forfeited to the government because
OF the violations OF the act of con-
gress perpetrated by the railroad COM
pany in selling the other part Of the
grant, approximately 100000 acres in
extent.
II is anticipated that the o. & c.
company will appeal the matter to
the supreme court of the United
States, and In case the government
wins in that tribunal; II is more than
likely that the secretary of the inte.
rior will restore the 100000 tract
to entry, giving the public chance
to file on II under the homestead or
timber and stone act.
As the matter now stands, follow
ing the adoption of the Fulton reso-
est rush of actual settlers to all sec
tions OF the grant throughout the
state within the next few months.
Much of the land is very desirable,
and while a good deal OF IT is covered
with timber, II cannot be excelled for
agricultural purposes when cleared.
Up to>the present time only about
25 actual settlers have had the hard
ihood TO settle on quartersection tracts
of the grant, about 20 OF them in CO.
lumbia county and about five in Lane
county. They have taken this step
on the theory that the o. & c. COM
pany had no right to these lands, and |
under the law must sell them to bona |
fide settlers and In not more than |
16O-acre tracts and at a price not |
over $3.50 per acre These actual |
settlers have all pooled their interest
have placed their claims in the hands
of A. w. Lafferty, local lawyer, who |
declared this morning that the pas
sage of the Fulton act is the greatest !
victory for the government imagin-
able, and will mean tremendous
rush OF settlers onto these lands With
In the next few months.
81 believe there will be an unpre-
cedented rush of actual settlers onto
these lands from now on" said Mr..
Lafferty this morning. Hundreds
of people have been waiting to see
what the outcome would be when
Mr.. Townsend took his fight into con.
gress in the form of the Fulton reso-
luton. Now that home-seekers, ac-
tual bona fide settlers see that the
government is taking the matter Sc
rously they will flock to these lands
at faster rate than the state has
ever known. l am confident of that.
look to see a good share of the most
available parts of the unsold portions
of the grant gobbled up within the
next six months, not only by people
in this state. but from all over the !
country.
Value of the Land.
"The railroad company, l under
stand holds these lands worth ABOUT
S25 an acre, and the settlers under
the law are entitled to buy them at
$3.50 an acre. Inc 81 sulNS "hiSh
have filed in the courts here are the
only cases so far where people have
undertaken to compel the Oregon q
California company to live up to the
law as set down in the acts of con-
gress of 1865 and 1852"
Lafferty prepared a resume Of the
legislation and historical facts rela-
tive to the land grants to the O.. Il c.
company for Attorney General Bon
aparte, and this resume was used ef-
fectively in the hearings before the
public land COMMITTEES of the senate
and the house in the fight for the
passage of the Fulton resolution
"The contention of the. railroad
company has been all along" contin-
ued Mr.. Lafferty, that 1t had clear
title to these lands, and that 1t could
not be compelled to sell for $3.50 an
acre or in tracts of only 100 acres
each, and then only to actual settlers
They have sold a great deal Of TIM