The daily telegram. [volume] (Clarksburg, W. Va.) 1901-1926, 1914-06-26
As Supreme Court Decision
Gives a Vast Area of Land
to Them.

CHARLESTON, June 26-Twc
Charleston men, General c. c. Watts
and d. G. 7. Davis. Jr.. have been
made multi-millionaires by a recent
decision OF the supreme court OF
the United States in the case of G. G.
watts, d. C. 7. Davis and Others
against Franklin K. Lane, secretary
OF the interior, and Frederick Den
nett, commissioner of the general
land office. The case was decided in
favor of the plaintiffs Monday.
The litigation involves the title to
100000 acres of valuable land sit.
uate in the Santa Cruz valley of Ari.
iona, which is known as the Baca
tloat No. 3. The land was granted tC
the plaintiffs by Congress in 1860 in
exchange for the tract on which now
stands the city of Las Vegas, N. NJ.
the object of the federal government
being to settle that section. The
land for which the Las Vegas tract
was traded was then a part of the
territory of New Mexico, but was
taken in by Arizona when that terri
tory was founded in 1863. Since that
time the title to the 10000 acres in
the Santa Cruz valley has been in al
most constant litigation.
General Watts and Mr.. Davis have
carried on their fight for the land for
a number of years. Having been de-
feated first in the land department
and then in the department of the
interior, they then brought suit in
the supreme court of the District OF
Columbia, where a decision was rem
dered in their favor.
The secretary of the interior and
the commissioner of the general land
office in turn appealed the case to
the court of appeals for the District
of Columbia, and the original
plaintiffs were again victorious.
In further effort to deprive the
plaintiffs of their property the de-
PENDANTS carried the case to the SUI
'preme court of appeals of the United
States, which rendered the final de-
cision referred to above.
While the property is worth many
millions of dollars, General Watts
expressed the opinion that 1t is not
worth as much as the estimate
placed on 1t by some capitalists, the
highest being $50,000,0O0.
1t is a rich grazing and farming
tract and is underlined with copper.
A part of it has been developed for
Its mineral resources and the copper
ore was found to be very rich.
Much Of the tract has been irri-
gated and is said to produce seven
crops of alfalfa yearly, while thous-
ands OF heads of cattle are grazed an
nually on mesa, hills and slopes.
The property is located only fifty
miles south Of Tuscon, Ariz., and is
eight miles from the Mexican border.
1t is on a branch line of the Southern
Pacific railroad, which was only re-
Gently constructed.
Herbert Noble, of New York, and
several other capitalists are assocl-
ated with the Charleston men in the
ownership of the land. Mr.. Davis is
now in Arizona looking after his in
terests in the vast estate. and 1t is
probable that General Watts will join
him there in few days.
The Hon. ]. w. Bailey, former
United States senator from Texas,
and a close personal friend OF Cen
eral Watts, represented the plaintiffs
and argued the case with great abil-
ity in both the court Of appeals OF
the District OF Columbia and the SUI
preme court of appeals of the
United States.