Year: 1865

PUBLIC--No. loo.


AN ACT to expedite the settlement of titles


to lands in the State Of California.


BE ii enacted by The Senate and House of Repre-
sentdtires Of the United States Of america an Con
gress assembled. That whenever the surveyor
general of California shall, in compliance with
the thirteenth section of an act entitled An
act to ascertain and settle the private land
claims in the State of California; approved
March third, eighteen hundred and fifty.one,
have caused any private land claim to be sur
veyed and a plat to be made thereof he shall
give notice that the same has been done by
publication, once week for four consecutive
weeks, in two newspapers, one published i'm
the city of San Francisco, and one published
near the land surveyed and shall retain i'm
his office, for public inspection, the survey and
plat until ninety DAYS from the date of the first
publication in San Francisco shall have expir-
ed and If. no objections are made to said sur
yey, he shall approve the same, and transmit
a copy of the survey and plat thereof to the
Commissioner of the General Land Office at
Washington, for his examination and appro-
val but IL objections are made to said survey
within the said ninety days, 10y any party
claiming to have an interest in the tract EN-
braced 10y the survey, or in any part thereof.
such objections shall be reduced To writing,
stating distinctly the interest Of the objcctor.
sslcd bS MIN vi attorney, anu
with the surveyor general, together with such
affidavts or other proofs as he may produce in
support of the objections. AT the expiration
of said ninety days the surveyor general shall
transmit 10 the Commissioner of the General
Land Office at Washington a copy Of the sur
vey and plat. and objections, and proofs filed
with him In support of the objections and al.
so of any proofs produced 10y the claimant and
filed with him in support of the survey, to-
nath thara th..
survey and plat are approved by the said Com
missioner he shall endorse thereon certificate
of his approval. If disapproved 10y him, or
it, in his opinion, the ends OF justice would be
subseryed thereby, he may require further
report from the surveyor general OF California,
touching the matters indicated by him. or
proofs to be taken thereon, or may direct a
new survey and plat to be made. Whenever
the objections are disposed of or the survey
and plat are corrected. or q new survey aud
plat are made in conformity with his direc
tions he shall endorse upon the survey and
plat adopted his certificate of approval. AT
| ter the survey and plat have been, as herein
before provided, approved by the Commission
er of the General Land Office. it shall be the
duty of the said Commissioner to cause pat
ent to issue to the claimant us soon as prac,i-
! cable after such approval. #


| See. .. .4nd be 10 further enacted, That the
provisions of the preceding section shall apply
To all surveys and pats by the surveyor gener-
/ al of California heretofore made, which have
not already been approved by one of the dis
trict courts of the United States for Califor-
MIA, or 10y the Commissioner of the General
Land Office 4: Proridsd, That where proceed
| ings for the correction or confirmation OF a
/ survey are pending on the passage of this act
in one of the said district courts, it shall be
lawful for such district court to proceed and
complete its examination and determination
of the matter, and its decree thereon shall be
| subject to appeal to the circuit court of the
United States for the district in like manner,
and with like effect as hereafter provided for
appeals in other cases to the circuit court and
such appeals may be i'm like manner disposed
of by said circuit court. sss
| Sec. 3. Ind be IL further eaacted, That where
a plat and survey have already been approved
or corrected by one Of the district courts oi
| the United States for California, and an appeal
from the decree of approval or correction has
already been taken to the Supreme Court of
the United States, the said Supreme Court
shall have jurisdiction to hear and determine
the appeal. But where from such decree OF
approval or correction no appeal has been ta-
ken to the Supreme Court, no appeal To that
count shall he allowed but an appeal may he
taken, within twelve months after this act
shall take effect, to the circuit court OF the
United States for California, and said circuit
court shall proceed to fully determine the mat
i ter. The said circuit court shall have power
to affirm or reverse or modify the action of
the district court, or order the case back to
the surveyor general for new survey. When
the case is ordered back for a new survey, tile
subsequent survey of the surveyor general
shall be under the supervision OF the Com
missioner Of the General Land Office, and not
of the district Or circuit court of the United
States.


j Sec. 4. Aadbe IL further enacted. That when
ever the district judge of any one of the dis
trict courts of the United States for California
Is interested in any land. the claim to which,
under the said act of March third, eighteen
hundred and fifty-one, is pending before him,
on appeal from the board of commissioners
created by said act. the said district court shall
order the case to be transferred To the circuit
court of the United States for California which
court shall thereupon take jurisdiction and de-


termine the same. The said district courts


may also order a transfer to the said circuit
court of any other cases arising under said act


pending before them, affecting the title To


lands within the corporate limits of any city


or town, and ia such cases both the circuit and


district judges may sit


Sec. s. Ind be a further enacted, That all


the right and title of the United States to the


lands within the corporate limits of the city
of San Francisco, as defined in the act incor.


porating said city, passed by the Legislature
OF the State of California on the fifteenth d
April. one thousand eight hundred and fifty
; oue are hereby relinQuiSdel and granted I,