Los Angeles herald., 1910-12-11
UNCLE SAM, AFTER
s500,000,00O OF
S P, FILES SUIT
First Action to Wrest Land from
Corporations Control In
wolves $1O,OoO,ooo
-
WAR ON BIG BUSINESS OPENS
Monied interests All Over World
Will Watch tbe Struggle
with Government
WAR ON BIG BUSINESS OPENS

Convinced by the results of preliniin-
ary Investigations that thousands OF
acres of oil lands IN California now
claimed by the Southern Pacific Rail-
road company and allied corporations
are held Illegally, the United States
yesterday began suit to wrest, the land
from the corporations control. The
first suit, fled in the United States cir
cult court, Involves 610917 acres of oil
lands valued at $10,000,000. Many SINH
lar suits will be filed IL the govern
ment wins the one initiated yesterday.
AS the statute of limitations would
have acted as a bar to the suit If filed
Monday, preparation of the complaint
was expedited as much as possible.
The Southern Pacific Railroad COM
pany the Southern Pacific company
and the Kern Trading and Oil com
pany are the defendant corporations
named in the action. The trading com,
pany, 1t is alleged, in the complaint,
is merely a dummy concern. The gov
ernment charges that some sort OF
secret agreement or purported mineral
lease" has been made between the
trading company and the railroad cor
poration with the intent to prevent the
government from regaining control of
the lands.
According to the complaint the
Southern Pacific Railroad company OBJ
tanned patents to the lands by virtue
of an act of congress passed July II,
1866, and resolution passed In June,
1870. These authorized the company
to patent alternate sections OF agricul-
tural land on each side of its right of
way. Mineral lands were excepted, and
the suit brought yesterday is based on
this exception.
The government asserts that the rail-
road corporations acquired the LANDS
with the full knowledge that they con-
tanned minerals, but that Charles w.
Eberlne, a land agent for them. swore
that the lands did not contain minerals.
SIMILAR TO on SUIT
The suit is similar in many respects
to one filed recently by Edmund Burke
to regain for the government title to
valuable lands alleged to contain oil.
Lands described In the suit are located
in the Midway field. Kern county.
'"rhis is only one suit of many
which will follow" said q. Ray Hor-
ton, assistant United States attorney,
yesterday. 1.-THE others will, be along
the same line. This case will determine
the action to be taken regarding many
other questionable patents. There is
no doubt but that the ownership of
lands valued at more than $500, 900
will be determined by the decision in
this suit.
ut will mean fight between the
government and big business and 1t
is a case that will be watched by
monied interests all over the world.
do not anticipate, however, that the
oil interests of California will be af-
fected, as much of the land has not
been prospected. What has been tested,
though, has been found to be rich In
OIL"
The complaint was signed by United
States Attorney General WickerSham
and A. I. Mccormick, United States at
torney for this district.
The defendants named are the South
ern Pacific Railroad company, James
X. Wilson and HI. S. King, trustees of
the Southern Pacific company; the
Central Trust company of New York,
Equitable Trust company of New York
and the Kern Trading and Oil COM
pany.
While it is asserted that Wilson and
King, the trustees, residents of San
Francisco, are surviving under the
deed executed by the Southern Pacific
and purporting to secure the payment
of $46,000000 of the corporate bonds,
which trust deed are claimed to be a
lien upon the lands, the Kern Trading
dummy" corporation.
The Central Trust company is
claimed to be trustee of S58,000,0 900 iii
bonds and the Equitable Trust as trus-
tee Of $SS, ,502, 900 in refunding bonds.
The complaint, which is lengthy,
reads in part as follows:
ARE MINERAr LANDS
IAN of the lands last herein de-
scribed and claimed by said defend
ant, the Southern Pacific Railroad
company, as aforesaid, were and are
mineral lands, and because thereof
We're and are by the terms of said
act of congress approved July q,
1866. and said joint resolution of con-
gress approved June 2S, 1870 ex-
cepted and excluded from the opera
tion of said grant, all of which facts
were well known to said defendant,
the Southern Pacific Railroad COM
pany, and its officers and agents, at
and prior to the time of the applica-
tion for patent for said lands as
aforesaid
but designing and intending to
cheat and defraud the plaintiff of all
said mineral lands, the said Southern
Pacific Railroad company did falsely,
fraudulently, dishonesty and unlaw-
fully include said mineral lands in
the list of lands claimed under the
terms of said grant as aforesaid; and
did falsely, fraudulently. dishonesty
and unlawfully conceal from the
plaintiff and this plaintiffs officers
having authority in the premises, the
mineral character of such lands; and
In and by said application for patent
did falsely, fraudulently, dishonesty
and unlawfully represent that all of
said lands, and particularly said lands
last hereinbefore described were nom
mineral in character. and We're OF the
character contemplated by the afore-
said grant; and for the purpose of
deceiving and defrauding the plaintiff
as aforesaid, said application for a
patent was supported by a certain
affidavit signed and sworn to by one
Charles W. Eberline, as the acting
land agent of the said Southern Pa
cific Railroad company-said Charles
w. Eberline being then and there
dilv authorized to represent and act
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