The Salt Lake tribune. [volume] (Salt Lake City, Utah) 1890-current, 1911-03-24
Land Claimants Settle Their
Disputes by Flipping Sill
yer Dollars.
TWELVE CONTESTS OVER
TRACTS QUICKLY SETTLED
Question of Squatters' Rights,
However, Remains to Be
Disposed of.

Twelve 320-tracls of choice dry farm
land near Modcna. ON the main line OF
the Salt Lake Route. were disposed OF
Thursday at the United States land office
by dipping silver dollars. Unable 10 set
,lc disputes as To who rightly was en-
.it,ed TO file on the land which was IN
Yolvcd m the land rush OF Wednesday,
the homestcaders LETT 1t to tickle Dame
Fortune. When she entered the arena
there were about fifty persons who were
arguing the matter Of who Snould bt
granted the right 10 file ON the lands
aid when she finished her work the dis
putcs had been settled and all without
arousing any bitter feeling among the
ContestiDg claimants to tho much valued
tracts.
4 number OF interesting situations
arose during the proceedings OF the day
In the efforts TO settle the claims OF the
homestcadcrs. At > o'clock In the after
noon four land contests were fled. the
homeSteadcrs being unable to settle their
disputes and not caring TO leave the set
rlcment with Dame Fortune. These con-
tests were filed by persons who claim
sgmatters' rights on the same tracts and
Will he settled by lengthy hearings
Brought as Last Resort.
The contests were brought after all
other methods of settlement failed The
following are the claimants in the con-
tests. Claude l.. Ileist. civil engineer
ri Salt Lake. against Ii. J.. A: Gunner
the artist OF Salt Lake, and Charles G.
Hubby OF Modena. All three persons
claimed prior rights and no ono Of the
three VIII submit. Another contest is
that of Charles w. Mack of Ogden and md
Eatnger Of Mt Pleasant is contcsting
the claim OF Joseph r. Wood of Mcdena,
cnch claiming prior rights. Another
James +. Muldoon, james A Paddock
and Louie f. Paddock, all OF Modena.
During the coin dipping of Thursday sew
eral Salt Lake City people were involved;
4. Y, Richmond OF Salt Lake matched
coins with two Modena men who had
claims on the land and defeated them
both, securing title To the land. H. E.
Shlller manager OF the Regal Cleaning
company. was in a dispute over 800 acres
OF choice land. He lost out in the flip
ping OF the dollar.
Roberts Is the Winner.
a particularly good piece of land near
the town OF MOdena was In dispute be-
tween Daniel b. Shields and Stanley
the value OF the land at 500 and dipped
the coin to sec who got the land and who
the 800. Roberts won the land and paid
Shields the 500. Mr.. Roberts says he
considers his land worth now close to
$4,000. y thrce-cornered Tipping contest
between Gideon and Grant Snyder and
J. j. NaldcnZer resulted In the Snyders
winning out They divided the tract.
During the day man whose name was
not learned decided to take the law into
his own hands. Waxing boisterous. he
declared that he was entitled 10 title on
the land upon which he fled and upon
which others fled also. He claimed the
land under the squatters' right. saying
he had been there since last September
IF they come monkeying around that
land he declared, they'll all be needin'
wooden legs
Peculiar Situation.
A peculiar situation was brought up In
the case OF Charles w. Mack OF Ogden
and Charles E2tinger of Mt. Pleasant
They claim that they hired man named
Wood at Modena to go on tract of
land they selected and do some work 80
that Mack and I;atInser could claim prior
rights to the land when it was opened for
entry. Ii is said Wood went onto the
land and did the work. When the land
was opened for entry Wednesday Wood
was In thc rush and filed on the land
Mack and EatiuGcr had employed him to
improve. This case probably VIII result
in ar interesting contest.
Many laughablc situations came up as
n result OF the big land opening. One
man learned Thursday, after 1t was too
late. that he was careless in surveying
his ground and instead OF describing the
lInd of his choice In the application he
described a half section OF ground some
distance away on mountain side COW
cred with boulders and cut by ravnes.