Year: 1867

very lmportaht case WAS Oeciueu IN the
United States Circuit Court, San Francisco,
on the 4th inst. The contest was over three
hundred acres eff land in and about Suffer-
VILE in Sacramento county, and known as
the Vancetraet Vance deraigned title from
Suffer. through L. w. Hastings and others,
and lately disposed of his interest to one Ira
G. French. an alien and resident of New
York. so that suit could be brought in the U.
S. Courts-the parties not liking to test the
matter before our State Courts. French
served notice on all the persons in possession
of the tract-Edwards, Lincoln, Grouse, and
five or six others Plaintiff introduced SUIT
ter's patent to the land in question, and the
chain of title from him to French. The de-
fendant's attorneys attempted to prove that
portion Of this land was not Of that class
granted to Sutter, inasmuch as the patent
follows the language Of the petition and the
expediente, and excludes there(rom the lands
% periodically Inundated by the overflow and
currents of the rivers" The Court-Judge
Deadly of Oregon-asked if all the land in
dispute is within the bounds Of the grant as
finally confirmed and set apart from the pub
lie domain. and that being admitted, the
Court said it would not hear any evidence as
to the particular class of lands. This Gov
ernment was bound by its treaty of Hidalgo
to give to these parties the lands to which
they were entitled, and the political power
of the Government having, after due consd-
Grafton, pointed them out in the most partc
ular manner, it was not for the Judiciary to
question It's right in the premises. Thus all
attempts on the part of the defendants to
attack''the patent having failed, they introduc-
ed the Judgment roll of the Sixth Judicial
District Court for taxes, and the Sheriff's
deed based thereon.


The plaintiff attacked this documentary
evidence in every possible way-frst by con-
tending that the land or the owners thereof
were not brought into Court properly. and
therefore the Court could have no jurisdiction;
and even if the land were properly in Court,
the sale by the Sheriff was not properly made
and the Sheriff. deed itself was deficient
The contest over this evidence lasted an en-
tire day, and the Court took a recess to ex-
anime the revenue laws of California bearing
on the point, and declared that it would
admit the Judgment roll and deed. Judge
Deadly upon this point said that taxes are a
debt which the individual or the property
owes to the State-a debt which is higher
obligation than any other debt-a debt due
by the Individual to the Government which
protects him in both life and property-a
debt which all men ought to pay without
force-and he did not sit there to pick flaws
in the proceedings, or for the purpose of crit
icising too closely the acts Of the different
officers of the Government in disposiIfg of
these lands for delinquent taxes. If there
were any doubts in his mind he would give
them on the side of the people, and would
presume, unless the contrary could be dis
tinctly shown, that the Courts and the off
GERS had done their duty as the law required


Then the case stood on one point only
Was the tax deed good as against the Sutter
title? The property was sold in 1865 for
State and county taxes of 1864, but the de.
PENDANTS. desiring to made their case as strong
as possible, offered III evidence another judg-
ment roll, and two other Sheriff. deeds based
thereon. 1t appeared that L. W. Hastings
was in 1850 the owner of this land, and con-
fessed judgment for $l6 ,000 On this iu1g-
ment the Coroner and acting Sheriff sold the
land from Hastings, and at the expiration of
six months Sheriff McCulloch made the deed
If these proceedings were legal Hastings had
no interest in the land at the time he con-
veyed it to the parties from whom French
deraigned, and therefore French could have
no standing in Court. The point was made
by plaintiff that the party who sold the land
must make the deed. unless by order a Court
Of competent jurisdiction should designate his
successor, or some one else. The Court sus-
tained the point, and thus left the Sheriff s
deed and the Sutter title face to face-one
against the other. The Court instructed the
jury to find for the defendants, and the jury
without leaving their seats, so found.


Thus the United States Circuit Court, and
jury of the business men of San Francisco,
have declared that a tax title is superior to
all others. The case occupied three days.
Lincoln, Edwards, and the others, were
laughed at by some for contesting the case
on tax title, and many who are interested
in the result of the suit-who hold tax titles
against the Sutter title-refused to aid in
bearing the expense, but these few perseyered
and have triumphed. They have saved their
lands and the rents of five or six years-for
they were sued for rents and damages-and
have procured judgment which will be a
blessing to the State, inasmuch as it will
oblige men to pay their taxes. There are
hundreds of cases similar to this which were
awaiting the result, and there it is: the tax
title is declared better than any other, or all
Others