The Topeka state journal. [volume] (Topeka, Kansas) 1892-1980, 1912-12-21
RAILROAD NEWS
Federal Suit Against Southern
Pacific for $25O,OOO,9OO.
Involves Title of Valuable Min
eraI Bearing Lands.
MORE SUITS ARE COMING
Accuse Road of Secret and
Fraudulent Purposes.
Other Items of Interest In the
Traffic World.
MORE SUITS ARE COMING

Los Angeles. Cal. Dec. 21.-The com
plaint in the long expected suit of the
federal government against the South
ern Pacific railroad, involving title &c
$3.50, coo, 600 worth of supposed mineral
hearing lands in Fresno county was
filed here in the United States district
court for the Southern district of Cali
fornia. Other suits are to follow. in
which the government will contest the
ownership of a total of $50, 100000 worth
of lands, according to B. D. Town
send, special assistant TO the attorney
general of the United States, who ar
rived here tonight.
Mr. Townsend with T J. Butler. also
q special ssistant, will prosecute the
suit The --tter filed the complaint
The suit is brought under the pro-
visions of the act of congress passed
July p, 1865, requir- ng the department
of the interior to exempt mineral bear
ing lands in issuing patents to rail-
roads The government Will contest
that of 10000 acres of land on the main
line of the Southern Pacific railroad.
in California, 45.726 acres are mineral
bearing and must revert to the public
domain The land is. for the most part,
IN the CoaIinsa Oil field and is under
the lease TO the Kern Trading and Oil
company. a subsidiary corporation of
the Southern Pacific and a joint de-
PENDANT in the suit
Following is the list of defendants: !
Southern Pacific Railroad company,
the Kern Trading and Oil company,
the Associated Oil company, the South +
ern Pacific Land company the Central {
Trust con pany of New York. Homer .
s King the ST Paul Consolidated Oil T
company, the Zier Oil company, the
Coalinga Oil and Gas company. the
Guthrey Oil company, the Confidence
4 company, the Associated Pipe Line
company. the Section Seven Oil COM
pany. c. F. IredeI. 1. L. Triner, Julius
Fried J. J. Vincent G. Z. Shore. Oren
G. Myers, w. S Porter. o. Schribner,
c. A Murdoch, George w. c. Baker,
W. W. Machem, NJ. l. Woy and NJ
Madison.
An the co-defendants are alleged by
the government hold leases on the
Southern Pacific lands and to be partf-
cipators in the profits from their min
eral yield
The contested patent was issued July
10, 1894. The patent was accepted, says
the complaint. with full acquiescence
in the statutory exception of mineral
bearing lands.
In charging fraudulent practices on
the part of the railroad company, in
the patent the complaint says;
1T was also the secret and fraudu-
lent purpose and intent of said South
Urn Pacific Railro--d company and its /
officers and agents to conceal from
Ills plaintiff the true facts in the
premises until more than six years had
elapsed from the date of the issuance
IF said patent to the end that the
plaintiff should be delayed in the in
stitutiou of judicial proceedings
The Southern Pacific Land company
$ described as a dummy corporation
Each of the defendants. with the eX-
,eption of the Central Trust company. ]
# New York. and Homer s. King, is
alleged to have extracted large quanti-
les of minerals from the lands. I