Source: https://www.law.cornell.edu/supremecourt/text/221/452
Timestamp: 2016-08-31 01:20:19
Document Index: 156279199

Matched Legal Cases: ['§ 8', '§ 7', '§ 8', '§ 6', '§ 7', '§ 8', '§ 8', '§ 8', '§ 8', '§ 2318', '§ 7']

MONTELLO SALT COMPANY, Plff. in Err., v. STATE OF UTAH. | US Law | LII / Legal Information Institute
Supreme Court aboutsearch liibulletin subscribe previews MONTELLO SALT COMPANY, Plff. in Err., v. STATE OF UTAH.
221 U.S. 452 (31 S.Ct. 706, 55 L.Ed. 810)
Argued: April 21, 1911.
[HTML] Messrs. S. T. Corn, Jesse B. Barton, James N. Kimball, and Maginnis & Maginnis for plaintiff in error.
The question in the case is whether § 8 of the enabling act of the state of Utah 28 Stat. at L. 109, chap. 138 granted to the state all of the saline lands within the state, or only enabled them to be selected as part of other lands granted and not specifically located.
'That lands to the extent of two townships in quantity, authorized by the third section of the act of February twenty-one, eighteen hundred and fifty-five 10 Stat. at L. 611, chap. 117, to be reserved for the establishment of the University of Utah, are hereby granted to the state of Utah for university purposes, to be held and used in accordance with the provisions of this section; and any portions of said lands that may not have been selected by said territory may be selected by said state. That in addition to the above, one hundred and ten thousand acres of land, to be selected and located as provided in the foregoing section of this act, and including all saline lands in said state, are hereby granted to said state, for the use of said university, and two hundred thousand acres for the use of an agricultural college therein. That the proceeds of the sale of said lands, or any portion thereof, shall constitute permanent funds, to be safely invested and held by said state, and the income thereof to be used exclusively for the purposes of such university and agricultural college, respectively.'
A demurrer by the state to the answer was sustained, and, the salt company refusing to proceed further, judgment was entered for the state in accordance with the prayer of the complainant, and the injunction was made perpetual. The judgment was affirmed by the supreme court of the state.
The state puts its reliance on the word 'including,' and urges that Congress used the word(1) 'in its true and proper sense, as defined by lexicographers; (2) in the sense of 'also."
And then the argument is that Congress grants, first, two townships in a county (this was an affirmation of a prior grant to the territory), and in addition 110,000 acres of land, to be selected and located in legal subdivisions (§ 7 referred to in § 8 for the manner of selection) within the state in such manner as the legislature may provide, with the approval of the Secretary of the Interior (§ 6 referred to in § 7 for the manner of selection). It is hence argued that the 110,000 acres was a grant of an undesignated portion of the public domain, and provision for its selection was necessary and was made, but no provision was made for the selection and location of saline lands, because all were granted 'irrespective of their area or 'locality." They are determined by their character, it is said, and 'when the grant is of all, and not of a part, selection and location become superfluous terms.' It is further urged that if Congress intended to make the saline lands subject only to be selected as part of the 110,000 acres, the phrase 'including all saline lands' is awkwardly and ungrammatically placed, but properly and grammatically placed if an independent grant is intended, and that Congress is supposed to know the rules of grammer,citing United States v. Goldenberk, 168 U. S. 95, 103, 42 L. ed. 394, 398, 18 Sup. Ct. Rep. 3.
In United States v. Pierce, 77 C. C. A. 425, 147 Fed. 199, a provision in a tariff act was considered which provided as follows: 'Woods: Logs and round manufactured timber, including pulp woods. . . .' The court (United States circuit court of appeals, second circuit) said: 'We think the word 'including' was used as the equivalent of 'also,' a sense in which it is frequently used in tariff acts.' Hiller v. United States, 45 C. C. A. 229, 106 Fed. 73, was referred to. The latter case was also concerned with a tariff act. The provision passed upon was 'embroideries, and all trimmings, including braids,' etc. The construction given to the provision by the importer was that it covered 'all trimmings, including braids' used for that purpose. The government, on the other hand, contended that it meant 'all trimmings, among which are included braids,' etc., and that the word 'including' was not used by way of specification, but by way of addition. The court said: 'It would be somewhat difficult to infer the legislative intention from the language of the paragraph without reference to the history of this part of the cotton schedule, because in the tariff acts the word 'including' is sometimes used merely to specify particularly that which belongs to the genus, and is sometimes used to add to the general class a species which does not naturally belong to it.' The court resorted for explanation to the cotton schedule, and decided in favor of the government's contention, one member of the court dissenting.
The state reinforces its interpretation of the words of § 8 by other considerations. It is urged that if Congress intended the saline lands to be a part of another grant, it is the first instance of the kind. Fourteen states are enumerated to which all of the salt springs within them respectively were granted. In twelve of the states there was a limitation of the number of springs. To Illinois the grant was of 'all springs within such state;' to New Mexico the grant was of 65,000 acres of nonmineral lands, 'together with all the saline lands in said territory.' To eighteen states no saline lands or salt springs were given.
The salt company opposes the contentions of the state, and invokes against the meaning attributed to § 8 the rule of strict construction of grants by the government. The purpose of the grant is, it is urged, to constitute a fund by the sale of the lands, the income from which is to be used exclusively for a university and agricultural college, and that the result of the grant as construed by the state would be to endow them as no other educational institution is endowed. And so construed, it is said, even by the decision in this case, the grant of 110,000 acres will be increased 40,000 acres, and as the demurrer concedes the deposit of salt is from 4 to 8 feet thick, there will be the further increase of two or three million tons of salt, worth in the aggregate an almost fabulous sum. Future discoveries, it is suggested, will increase the grant still more.
Such consequences of the state's contention at once challenges its soundness, and we recall that counsel for the state asserted at the oral argument that its title attached to all lands having salt deposits, no matter what thickness of arable soil lay above the deposits, and as it is insisted that no selection of saline lands is necessary, embarrassment in the administration of the land laws and serious conflicts of title may arise. However, let us consider the words of § 8. The determining word is, of course the word 'including.' It may have the sense of addition, as we have seen, and of 'also;' but, we have also seen, 'may merely specify particularly that which belongs to the genus.' Hiller v. United States, 45 C. C. A. 229, 106 Fed. 73, 74. It is the participle of the word 'include,' which means, according to the definition of the Century Dictionary, (1) 'to confine within something; hold as in an inclosure; inclose; contain.' (2) 'To comprise as a part, or as something incident or pertinent; comprehend; take in; as the greater includes the less; . . . the Roman Empire included many nations.' 'Including,' being a participle, is in the nature of an adjective and is a modifier. What, then, does it modify as used in § 8? Necessarily, we think, the preceding substantive phrase 'one hundred and ten thousand acres of land,' and we have the meaning of the section to be that the saline lands are to be contained in or comprise a part of the 110,000 acres of land. We see no particular awkwardness in the expression of the purpose, and it well may be contended that it needs not for its support the rule of strict construction. And such purpose is in harmony with grants of saline lands to other states. It is also sustained by the reports of the committees of the House and Senate.
In Henry v. Henry, 81 Ky. 342, a bequest of $14,000, 'including certain notes,' was held to mean that the notes formed a part of the $14,000, and were not in addition thereto.
In Neher v. McCook County, 11 S. D. 422, 78 N. W. 998, it was held that a certain section of the laws of the state which provided that the sheriff's fees should be $16 for summoning a jury, 'including mileage,' did not entitle him to mileage in addition to the $16.
We have seen that the state urges that the word 'and' is always employed to express the relation of addition, and it is said, with words of emphasis, that Congress cannot be supposed to have been ignorant of its meaning. The supreme court of the state also gave special significance to the use of 'and,' as adding something to that which preceded. The court also considered that the word 'including' was used as a word of enlargement, the learned court being of opinion that such was its ordinary sense. With this we cannot concur. It is its exceptional sense, as the dictionaries and cases indicate. We may concede to 'and' the additive power attributed to it. It gives in connection with 'including' a quality to the grant of 110,000 acres which it would not have had,the quality of selection from the saline lands of the state. And that such quality would not exist unless expressly conferred we do not understand is controverted. Indeed, it cannot be controverted. Under the applicable statutes and uniform policy of the government, saline lands would not have been subject to selection in satisfaction of the 110,000-acre grant, in the absence of a special provision authorizing their selection. Rev. Stat. § 2318, U. S. Comp. Stat. 1901, p. 1423; Act of January 12, 1877, 19 Stat. at L. 221, chap. 18, U. S. Comp. Stat. 1901, p. 1547; Morton v. Nebraska, 21 Wall. 660, 22 L. ed. 639, 12 Mor. Min. Rep. 451; Cole v. Markley, 2 Land Dec. 847; Re Salt Bluff Placer, 7 Land Dec. 549; Re Southwestern Min. Co. 14 Land Dec. 597; Jeremy v. Thompson, 20 Land Dec. 299; Re Geissler, 27 Land Dec. 515.
It is finally contended that if the saline lands are included in the 110,000 acres, the state has the right to select all of them, and that until it declares its intention no rights can be acquired by others under the mining laws. We are not called upon to discuss the contention. It is alleged in the answer that the state has selected and received grants from the United States for the full amount of 110,000 acres, 'selected and located as provided in §§ 7 and 8 of the enabling act.' As the state demurred to the answer, the truth of the allegation must be considered as admitted.
Mr. Justice Harland dissents.