East Oregonian : E.O. (Pendleton, OR) 1888-current, 1915-09-23
The OregOn-CaIifOrnia Land Grant Problem
0Adas.9 Eeco. Oswald We. Before cooare. H.sm Salem

lnslstence upon retention Of title and
control Of the grant.
The lands were granted as an aid
to the construction Of the road and
served that purpose when they were
pledged as security for money Dor.
rowed to do so. The company has
had nearly half a century in which
to dispose of the lands to settlers and
1t should be stopped from coming
in at this late date and protesting q
desire to do the very thing which II
has all these years failed to do, and
which the state or federal govern
ment will surely do should either OF
them take over the administration OF
the grant.
Moral Equities.
Among the equities claimed by the
railroad and often referred to az
moral equities are its claims fol-
taxes and administration expenses
paid on account of the grant lands
and for free transportation provided
the troops OF the United States.
Administration Expenses.
The administration expenses Of the
grant are given as Sl,1Ss,0O0. If ap-
piled to the entire grant-lands sold
and unsVld-it figures about thirty
four cents an acre. II was to be ex-
pected. when the railroad company
asked for and accepted this grant
with its provisions calling for the sale
OF the lands to settlers at $3.50 per
acre, that in its administration GER
tain expense would be incurred II
these expenses have mounted to large
figures It is the fault Of the company
and not of the public. An early
compliance with the terms Of the
grant would have avoided the incur
ring Of this great expense. It was one
of the risks the railroad assumed
when It adopted a policy the aim OF
which was to eventually repudiate a
solemn obligation It owed to the peo-
pie.
The company is reported as having
paid in taxes for the years 1872 to
1912 inclusive. s2,75O,O00.
There are standing unpaid for the
years 1913-14-15 about S1.S3S,00
The Portland Oregonian in an ar
ticle upon the land grant published a
few days after the supreme court had
rendered its decision, had this to say
upon the question of unpaid taxes:
Under the terms Of the courts de-
cislon on Monday it is apparent that
the maximum equity that the rail-
road can claim in the property is
$3.50 per acre. w. d. Fenton, local
attorney for the Southern Pacific
company, has ventured the opinion
that the company will not be willing
to pay taxes on a greater valuation
than $3.50 an acre, and that probably
no payments will be made on more
than this valuation for the interim
during which no payments have been
made"
In view Of the holding of the court
and this statement by Mr., Fenton,
the company win undoubtedly insist
that $3.50 is the maximum value
which can be applied TO the lands for
the purpose of taxation. Further
more, the company would be expect
ed to insist that inasmueh as most OF
the land grant counties are only as
sessing lands at about 60 per cent of
their full value they would be entitled
10 a further deduction which would
reduce the assessed valuation of the
lands to about $1.59 per acre.
If these reductions are insisted on
and secured by the railroad company
i will mean that the land grant
counties will be deprived of over a
million dollars of revenue which 9TH
erwise would have been collected.
If the said sum. which is estimat-
ID at s1.126, 900, is deducted from the
,mount now standing unpaid 1t will