New Mexico state record. (Santa Fe, N.M.) 1914-19??, 1917-03-30
OPINION BY SUPREME
COURT IN KEEPERS CASE

The opinion of Nj. Justice Nc
Kenna. of the u. S. Supreme court,
in the case of the State of New
Mexico, plaintiff, VS.. Franklin K
Lane, secretary of the interior of
the United States, and Clay Tallman,
commissioner Of the general land
office. in the famous Keepers coal
land Ease of Gallup, has been re-
ceived by officials of the state land
office.
The opinion does not 60 deeply
into the merits of the case and it is
not regarded as establishing a pre-
cedent for hundreds of other cases
of similar character pending in this
state.
In dismissing the appeal the jus
tice cites the various grounds raised
in the motion; first, that the Unit
ed States is a necessary party be-
cause it appears the title to the land
involved is in the United States and
that it is the purpose of the defen-
dants to dispose of the land in &C
cordance with the provisions of the
mineral land laws of the United
States. and that If the defendants
be enjoined from executing such
purpose. the United States would be
deprived of the purchase price of
the land; second, it appears from
the bill that the state has no title or
interest in the land because it was
known coal land at the date of the
passage of the act of June 81, 1893.
and was not intended to be grant,
ed nor granted to the territory of
New Mexico by that act nor any
subsequent act; third, that complete
inquiry was made by the officers
of the land department and they
found the fact to be that at the date
of the act the land was known to
be valuable for mineral purposes;
fourth, it appears that one Keepers
had purchased the land and there
fore was an indispensable party;
fifth, the bill is in other respects
uncertain, informal and insufficient
and does not state facts sufficient
to '%entitic the state to any relief.
In concluding his opinion, Mr..
Justice McKenna sums up the n
tire opinion saying:
"The motion should be granted on
the ground that the suit IS n
against the United States under the
authority of Louisiana VS.. Garfield
FL, u. S. 70. In that case a bill
was brought in this court to estab-
lish the title of the state of Louisiana
to certain swamp lands which 1t
claimed under the statutes of the
United States and to enjoin the Sc
cretary of the interior and other Of
ficers of the land department from
carrying out an order making diff
ferent disposition of the land.
"Under the statute it was contend
ed the land vested in the state in
fee simp,e-that is, the act was con-
to have the same character
and efficacy as the act of June Fl,
1898, is asserted to have in the case
at bar. And certain facts were ne
cessary to be determined as elements
of decision. This court said that
in the case there were questions
Of law and of fact upon which the
United States would have to be
So in the present cas- there
is a question of law whether the act
of June 81, 1893, had the quality as
a grant of the land asserted of it,
of itself or because of its
terms or their prior construction or
its adoption, and again of the fact
Of the character of the land at the
time of the grant and the evidence
Of it and the knowledge of it.
ut would seem, besides, that under
he averments of the bill Keepers
IS an indispensable party, he hav-
ing become, according to the bill, a
of the land and paid the
purchase price thereof. To make
rim a party would GUST this court
IF jurisdiction, if he is a citizen of
New Mexico. and the presumption
by defendants that he is
does not deny. Califor-
,ia VS.. Southern Pacific company,
81 u. S. 229. dismissed"