Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1910-02-28
No Doubt of Ownership by the
United States.
SPECIAL COUNSEL'S DATA
Traced From English Magma Charta
Down to the Present Time.
DOCKS ALONG EASTERN BANK
Increasing Population Is Considered
in Lengthy Review of Anacostia
River Improvement Project.

Nothing in the way of title will in
terfere with the reclamation Of the Ana
costa flats. is the opinion of Hugh Tag
CART special counsel on the ownership
OF lands and riparian rights along the
Anacostia river. The report on this mat
ter has been in the hands of the Com
missioners for four days. and was made
public during board session today.
The report is tremendous typewriter
affair, which reaches far hack. starts
with the Magma Charta, and traces the
sovereign rights of the original con-
querors of the new world down through
the history of the colonies, the thirteen
original states. to the present day, and
concludes as follows:
That the United States. under the
Constitution and the cession from Mary
land, Is vested, as sovereign. with abso-
lutte title and dominion IN and over the
space between high-water mark on each
side Of the Anacostia river, and COM
prising the shores and bed OF the stream.
That the United States holds such title
and dominion. in trust for the public pur
poses OF navigation and fishery. and for
such other purposes as may conduce to
the general welfare of the people. as to
which Congress. as the representative Of
THAT as against the United States. in
the execution of such trusts. riparian
owners are invested with no rights.
Belongs to Government.
THAT so long as the government con-
fines its operations. In any scheme Of I'm
provement, to the space aforesaid, 1t in
ours no liability under the fifth amend
ment to the Constitution. which requires
that private property shall not be taken
for public use without just compensa-
tion.' and that land reclaimed through
such improvement will belong absolutely
to the United States.
1.-The above statement applies to that
portion of the river not included in the
immediate frontage OF the city of Wash
ington upon 1t. The special features of
that frontage require separate consider
ation,"
The report contains the statement:
1T may also be said that sooner or
later the increase Of population on the
eastern side Of the river and the bust
ness interests Of the section will re-
docks on that side. The erection of
these should not be left to chance or
individual caprice. but should he regu
lated In advance by a systematic plan.
Of which street along the shore
owned and controlled by the United
States would seem 10 be a primary
requisite"
From Lord Baltimore.
The river bed and waters OF the Ana
costa river were owned entirely and
absolutely by the state of Maryland
having received them through Lord
Baltimore, who in turn got them
from his sovereign liege lord. the Kins
of England, in accordance with the OLD
habit of giving the river beds over to
the rulers of England. Therefore. when
Maryland turned over some Of her land
to be known as the District OF Colum-
bia, the title to the river beds went
with it. The report on this point as
boiled down to the following:
In the discussion under the first and
second heads OF the present inquiry, the
devoution OF title and dominion to and
over the shores and bed Of the Anacostia
river and the waters above them we're
traced from the first sovereign to the
present one. and II was shown that when
the state OF Maryland became independ-
ent such title and dominion became
vested in her. as sovereign. in trust for
the people of the state, for navigation
and fishery and such other public pur-
poses as might be deemed by her con-
ductive to their welfare.
by ratifying the Constitution of the
United States she transferred to the
United States many of her sovereign
powers, and among them the power to
regulate commerce between her and the
other sovereign states, and with foreign
nations which included the power to reg
ulate and control her navigable waters
BY this action she transferred to the
United States no title to the soil Of the
navigable waters belonging TO her In
property right. but did transfer to the
United States the right to use such soil
In the exercise OF the power conferred;
and the right remained in her to improve
the navigation Of such waters. subject
only to the paramount authority OF the
United States to regulate and control the
same. With the consent of the United
States she might conduct or authorize
such works to that end as she might
deem proper.