Evening star., 1943-04-30
Fan1i|ies0usted
By Navy |rked
AtDe|ay in Pay
II of $50 Lund Owner.
Moved From Quontico
Area Paid So Far
BY JAMES BIRCHFIELD,
Star Staff Correspondent.

STAFFORD COURTHOUSE. Va.
April 30.-Unfamiliar with the legal
processes that accompany sale OF
land to the Government, most of the
$50 families in Stafford, Prince
William and Fauquier Counties
whose homes and land we're taken
over by the Navy in October to en-
large the Quantico Marine Base
can't understand why they haven't
been paid.
So far, II persons have been sent
their checks, according to A. w
Embrey, jr., special United States
district attorney assigned by the
Justice Department to help make
the payments. The difficult task OF
obtaining clear titles, he said, has
delayed the work. but the titles are
now being cleared steadily and pay
ments should come through con-
tinuously. Ten claims. he added,
are now in the District Court at Nor
folk awaiting authorization for pay
ment.
Defects in Titles.
Missing documents and other title
defects, he estimated, may require
court action on about one-fourth OF
the cases
Heads of families said they were
notified to move from their homes
and farms after the Navy con-
demned $4,000 acres in the three
counties October 5. They said they
were given only short time to
find new homes, but were promised
speedy payment for their land.
They said many families had
moved in with neighbors for a short
time, others had gone to live with
relatives or had succeeded in pur-
chasing new homes. Some, they
said, had borrowed money to pur-
chase new farms and were now
faced with continuing interest pay
ments while they wait for their
money.
A few families on the border of
the reservation, near the Quantico
base, have not yet been forced to
move, but must give up their homes
by May IS, it was said. Several of
these men, regularly employed at
the base, said they have been un-
able to find houses near their work.
New Buildings Stopped.
r. w. Abel, who must give up a
house and store building near the
base. said about 20 new houses we're
built to be sold or rented to some of
those forced to move. He said, how
ever, that lack of priorities stopped
this project before enough houses
were provided.
While the moved families find it
difficult to understand why the
checks are so long in coming, Mr.
Embrey pointed out that under
existing legislation the owner must
show q clear title before payment
can be made.
Mr.. Embrey said that of the first
IS titles sent to his ONCE by the firm
employed to examine titles only one
was without objection. He said titles
to some tracts had as many as 81
legal pages of objections.
For example, he said, one woman s
payment was held up because OF a
missing deed in the title chain.
When advised of the trouble, he
added. she produced the deed. which
had been drawn in 1882 but never
recorded.
Some Need Court Action.
Others, he said, had been given
land by their fathers or grand
fathers who neglected to give deeds
to the property. Still other titles
are complicated by the fact that
they we're drawn so or IS years ago
by justices of the peace who failed
to include full names of the persons
affected or full descriptions of the
property.
Mr.. Embrey estimated that ap-
proximately IS per cent of the 750
landowners should receive their
pay without too much delay. He
said about Is per cent may require
court action before titles can be
cleared.
To avoid such delays Senator Byrd,
Democrat, of Virginia introduced a
bill April 7 to make it easier for
persons to receive payment for land
taken by the Government.
The bill would permit all who
have an interest in any property
taken by condemnation to file a
sworn claim in court setting forth
their interests and including any
liens or other claims against the
property. The court could then act
on the claims in minimum of 30
days and order a distribution of
funds in whole or in part to owners.
The families who were moved out
faced additional hardships due to
the speed with which the Navy
acted in acquiring the land. Con-
demnation proceedings were brought
for the entire area and the Navy
was given possession before ap-
praisals were made on the individual
pieces or property, and some prop
erty owners said appraisals for their
land were too low. At least one
property owner was reported to
have refused to accept the figure
ct which his farm was valued.
A. B. Cioe. Stafford County deputy
treasurer, said his brother, w. w.
Cloe, was given $500 for his 200
acre dairy farm. He said a new
dairy barn had been erected a short
time before the land was taken.
Mr.. Cloe said his brother had
purchased nine-acre tract for
$500. but had been forced to sell
his Is dairy cows because of lack
OF space. He said his brother also
lost mail route when the area was
taken. - So.
Mr.. Cloe said 1t was reported that
a 450-acre farm belonging to Milton
Mountioy was appraised at 5000.
and that Mr.. Mountjoy had refused
to accept the appraisal.
On the other hand, Mrs. Murray
Helm, whose husband Is employed
at the Quantico base. said their
house and two-acre tract was ap-
praised ut $3.50, which she said they
felt was q good offer.
E. r. Heitkamp said he had left
a 136-acre farm on which he had
built . house three years ago. He
said he fiISt moved in with q neigh