Rocky Ford enterprise., 1913-02-07
. r + :. r + + r r r r r + +
MONTHLY DIGEST.
Of Important Public Land De- :
cisions. :
1 I. = = = 4 = & 4, r 4 4 = 4

+ r + + r + + + + + r + 4 r + r
The marriage of a woman under 2I
years of age adds the disqualification
of coverture to that of minority, and
in the event that she is deserted by
her husband, such desertion, while it
removes the disqualification growing
out of the presumption that the hus-
band is the head of the family, does
mot affect her status as minor.
An individual is never family,
that term being applicable only to
collective body of persons living as a
household.
No reported case imports qualifca-
tion to make homestead entry to one
shown to be minor, merely because
of the marriage and desertion of such
person.
The reported cases go no further
than to hold that the disqualification
due to coverture is removed by bona
fide separation or living apart, and
that where, under such circumstances,
the wife has arrived at the age of FL
years or is left as the actual head of
the family, she may make homestead
entry, if otherwise qualified. But a
separation, in whatever form or
through whatsoever means accom-
plished, does not, of itself, release
her, on applying to make homestead
entry, from showing due qualification,
as would have been required had she
never been married.
Ii married woman has not here
tofore exhausted her homestead right
by the making and perfection of
homestead entry and is in fact living
tention OF assuming marital relations
..,t, H. fl,a hot h. h,-
a husband living from whom she ha,
not been divorced does not deprive
her of the right to make homestead
entry.
Completion of title to land en-
braced in a homestead entry by pay
ment, as provided by the act of June
18th, 1880. is an exercise of the home
stead right, and person having thus
exercised his full homestead right in
that manner is not entitled to make
second homestead entry under any
of the acts providing for second
homestead entries, under certain Cir
cumstances.
Lands embraced within a bona fide
settlement claim are not subject to
school indemnity selection: The state
however has right to be heard upon
the issue of subsisting settlement at
date of its proffered selection.
No final Communication proofs can bt
hereafter accepted, which show less
than fourteen months residence, ex-
cept in cases where statutory author
ity exists to the contrary. Case of
Halvorson, $50 L. D. 450. Overruled
When the Land Department is neg
ligent in passing upon an application
to enter. applicant is not obliged to
IoI
reside upon the land until such time
as entry has been allowed.
In view of the Department, brief
absences in rendering humane service
required by moral sentiment, or IN
case of the entryman's relative or his
own health should not be held to
break continuity of actual residence.
So long as sufficient water remains
in river to meet the appropriation
and beneficial use of present users, no
lawful or equitable complaint can be
made of the diversion CT other wat
erE of the river through arpropria-
ton and beneficial use yot'icrs. even
though such appropriation and di-
version may so lower the level Of the
river as to necessitate the adoption
by prior users of other methods of
transferring the water appropriated
by them from the river bed to their
lands. Citing Schodde v. Twin Falls
Land & Water Co., (2a4 U. S. 1917.
Settlement is not requisite to a
compliance with the desert land laws
and any such acts do not initiate any
interest in the land OF any valid claim
thereto superior to that acquired by
concurrent homestead entry.
Rule 10 of the circular of April ~,
1900, providing for amendments in
desert entries. was designed as a re-
quiremcnt to evidence the good faith
of claimant Amendment will be
permitted thereunder, considering the
nature of the difficulties encountered,
within any reasonable time, notwith-
standing said circular limits the time