The Robesonian., 1910-10-20

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MANY HOMES INVOLVED.
A Peculiar Legal Tangle-
Many Citizens of Harnett May
be Forced Out of Homes.
Ellington Dispatch, 18th.
Perhaps the most important
suit ever brought in Harnett
county will come to a hearing at
the November term of the su-
perior court for the trial of civil
cases. The title of the action
is Buckhorn Land & Timber Co.
VS.. T. A. Harrington and others.
"Others" in this case repre-
sents about 40 or so families in
Harnett and Lee counties. The
suit is brought by the company
to recover possession Of about
10000 acres of land which is oc-
cupied by the defendants, many
of whom have lived all their lives
on the land, raised families and
settled their children on individ-
ual tracts.
The real beginning of this case,
as appears from records, was
November 26, 1868, when J. M.
Heck and G. w. Sweapson, rep
resentatives Of the Deep River
Manufacturing Company, bought
10000 acres Of land, at 50 cents
an acre, from John w. Mckay
and others, and conveyed it to
the Deep River Manufacturing
Company December 8. 1868. The
Deep River Manufacturing Com
pany then decided the property
to one D. J. Pruyn, a carpet
bagger lobbyist. who in 1869,
while the carpet-bag Legislature
was in session, sold the land to
the State at $40 an acre, or $780,
600 for the tract, which was paid
in North Carolina bonds issued at
that time.
SCHEME OF LONG AGO.
There was a scheme on foot
among certain carpet-baggers
and scalawags to build the State
penitentiary on this land. Heck
and Sweapson were unable to
make this stupendous deal with
the State, therefore they con-
veyed to the Manufacturing
Company which in turn conveyed
to Pruyn and he, a very infuen-
tial carpet-bagger lobbyist, ef-
fected the much coveted deal.
II 1872, when the Democratic
Legislature assembled, a com
mittee was appointed to investi.
gate the fraud. On report OF
the commission the Legislature
repudiated both the land dea
and the bonds. A summons wa:
then issued for Pruyn, but h
was never found. At this tim
John D. Williams. president O
the State Bank at Raleigh, he'll
a majority of these bonds whicl
had been transferred to him b
Pruyn without recourse, and h
took a deed from the carpet-ba
government and then redeeme
it to the Deep River Manufactul
ing Company. Heck, Sweapso
and Williamson together forme
what is known as the America
Iron & Steel Co. and took dee
purporting to be a deed from tt
Deep River Manufacturing Con
pany, which had already deedt
the property to Pruyn. Aft
this Heck goes to the Lobdt
Car Wheel Company of Wilmin
ton, Del. and represents to the
that he is the owner Of lar,
iron mine prospects in Nor
Carolina and induces the Lo
dell company to take stock in /
company and also secured fre
them loan of 100000, wi
which to equip the large plant
represented with smelters. sha:
ing and other fixtures necessa
in operating this enormous Lla1
With a part Of this money He
and Sweapson erected a SIN
smelling plant which they op
ated for about three months,
the business go under {
skipped with Lobdell's mon
This was in 1876.
CITIZENS TOOK POSSESSION.
From 1876 to 1906 there ,
no right of possession exerci
upon the 10, 900 acre tract Of |;
in question DnrinU this Ia