Montana labor news., 1945-04-19
A RAILROAD REAL
ESTATE DEAL
OF CONSEQUENCE
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Continued from Page OueJ
sources. was enabled to fairly luxuriate
in land contests and htigation-with
more or less pull with courts, judges,
justices, land officials, congressman,
United States senators, jurors and legis-
lators.
About the time Montana was admit
ted to the Union as a state, in 1889,
an agitation sprang up in all the miner
a~l-bearing regions Of the state, to save
the mineral lands of the commonwealth
to and for the people. Public meetings
were held and newspapers were filled
with the subject. A state convention,
numerously attended, was held at Hell
ena. at which decisive steps were taken
to secure action on behalf of the peo-
pie. State legislation was secured ap-
pointing a state mineral land agent at
the national capital at Washington, at
an expense Of $4,000 a-year, to obtain
legislation from congress setting apart
the mineral lands Of Montana forever
from railway claim and control, and
s-egregating them from the public grant
Of lands to the Northern Pacific Rail
road.
After several years of earnest work
at much expense to the state, congress
finally enacted a law complying with
the demands of the people Of Montana
and miners and prospectors We're salts
fled. Then lethargy and lack Of yigi
lance on the part of the people ensue'
and no more attention was paid to tn
matter.
Right at this iuncture the fine worl
of the railroad began, and the stat
was jobbed and cheated and looted t
the limit; while the railway compan
garnered the harvest Of many millio.
dollars Of profit-or rather-loot.
The Northern Pacific Railroad ha
always owned and operated a collectio
of United States senators and congress
men in the states its lines traverse.
selected as its agent, s%ervitor and attoi
ney a senator from Montana. 1t CO.
money to do so, but, 1T paid"
Under the ~easy-going Mckinley az
ministration, United States senate
were given plenary power in the sele
ton of federal officials from their ov
states. It was SO in Montana. tt
state, under the law passed by congre.
was divided into three mineral land di
tricts. There were three commissions
chosen for each district. It was tht
duty to classify all lands in the railro
grant as mineral or nOn-mineral. T
land classified as mineral was to
segregated from the non-mineral and
become again a part of the public {
main, open to mineral entry and pI
chase. That classified as non-mine
was patented to the railway compa.
The railroad was given the right a
privilege to select lieu lands for all m
eral lands sci apart by these mine
land commissioners out of its grant.
could make its own selection from
public land in the state to make g
the deficiency.
The law became effective during
second administration of presid
Cleveland. at that time the North
Pacific Railway Company had its Un.
States senator, nominally a Republi
in the national senate; and Daniel
mont, later vice president of the MOI
ern Pacific, nominally a Democrat
member Of the presidents cabinet. Vi
the remainder Of Cleveland's admi
tration and during the first McKil
administration, the mineral land c.
missioners were chosen and did t
work. The railroad, by its agent, at
neys, officials and senators, practic
named the commissioners. If it did
name all Of them, it certainly man
lated, controlled and directed them,
majority Of them, in the service
performed. Their work Injured to
great satisfaction and profit of the
road.
These commissioners were mainl,
two kinds: men who knew absolt
nothing about mineral land and mi
ais. broken-down political hacks I