The Waxahachie daily light. [volume] (Waxahachie, Tex.) 1894-current, 1909-03-05
The Former ! and Commissioner
Terrell Appears Before
House Committee.
FINDS Z OWLS IN SHACK
Tells Of Visiting a Small Structure
Supposed to BE the Home Of an
Actual SenIer-FIIorls 10
Recover Land

AEEtin. ltNdNt MafCu Ht hc q"
mlniatration measures providing for
the recovery Of school lands that are
alleged TO have been taken fraudu-
lently from the state were acted
upon by the house committee on
reforms I'm civil and criminal pro
cedurc. following some sensational
charges against wealthy land owners
by !. !. Terrell former land com
missioner Of Texas, employed by the
governor to assist the attorney gen
erals department in this undertak-
ing, and the refutation of some OF
those charges as "slanderous and
violent" by Representative Lee Of
Tom Green county.
The bill appropriating $4,000, or
so much thereof as may prove neces-
sary. to enable the attorney generals
Office TO carry on the litigation
against Illegal holders of school
land, was given n favorable report.
The bin providing for the compulsory
attendance Of witnesses, both for the
state aud defense IN Travis county,
was the proposition over which the
committee wrangled, and eventually
was given majority unfavorable re-
port, MIR. German giving notice Of
minority favorable report These
two bills are by Messrs. Mobley and
strickland They have been under
consideration longer than any other
bills referred to this committee.
For nearly two hours yesterday
morning former Land Commissioner
Terrell argued for favorable report
on the compulsory witness attend
nnco bill. The school land recovery
subject with him proved broad
one, and he explained many side
details. In this he told of the man
ncr IN which certain big ronehmen
become guilty OF subordinatlon of
perjury by putting Mexican hired
hands aud others on school land To-
Gated In their ranches and swear
ing that the claims were taken up
regularly He went 80 far as to men
tlon certain wealthy man, for ex-
ample who made his daughters take
up school land In his ranch proper
ty, swearing said Mr.. Terrell, that
the particular land was taken up
under the process Of law for homes.
He spoke OF tho citizen as his
| friend, and said that when litigation
was imminent the claims were re-
leased He exhibited photographs OF
one-room box shanties, erected as
nero protexts for homes, and under-
took to show by the similarity of
equipment that many of these box
houses were constructed by ranch
men and are seldom II ever, occu-
pied. lie told OF one shanty he visit
ed In gathering evidence which he
found In an Isolated place, locked,
Breaking IN, two horned owls that
would enter through holes In the
gates, flew out, The owls, he said
were and had been the sole occupants
OF the place, and yet 1t was supposed
to be an actual settlers home,
Mr. Terrell told of efforts to re-
cover school land by trying the cases
IN the counties in which the litlga-
| ton originated and said II was Il
| failure. He contendod that the Wit
nosses should be compelled to come
| to Travis county to testify, as the
| Jurors in the districts involved are
In sympathy with the cause OF tho
| ronchmen. He pointed TO eases In
which he deemed rank injustice to
| deserving homesoekers had been
done, In favor OF the ranchmen, He
| did not wish TO reflect on the oltl-
2ons OF the western portion Of the
state by bis reference to the Jurors,
he said, but considered that many
are preJudlced, The land frauds he
branded as an unprecedented rob
| bory iu TaxaA IA tho grant harm, al