John Catron

“ It is likewise agreed, that the parties will give to each other notice of their intention to sell; each of them having in themselves, or in their attorneys, the same right and privilege which has been specified in regard to the Indian River tract. And the said Marquis, in consideration of the said sale and transfer made by said Jos e, obligates himself to construct and erect, at his own charge and expense, on the said Black Creek, all its necessary machinery, dams and houses, which ought to be built in such a manner that the conditions of the grant be fulfilled ”

“ Mr. Berrien, in reply.
1. The petition and decree gave a valid title to 16,000 acres of land, without reference to location. It was inchoate in one sense, that petitioners might, on application to the Spanish government, if it had continued, have obtained a perfect title; but it gave a right of property protected by the treaty, and recognized by this court. It is then equal to an absolute title. Delassus v. U. States, 9 Pet., 117, 132. See the treaty of 1819, more express than that of 1803. ”

“ The petition set forth, that, on the 29th day of October, 1817, a grant for 16,000 acres of land was made by the Spanish Governor, Coppinger, to Jos e Argote Villalobos, for the purpose of erecting thereon a water saw-mill; that the location thereof was to be on Trout Creek, in the Province of East Florida ”

“ This cause came on to be heard on the transcript of the record from the Superior Court for the District of East Florida, and was argued by counsel. On consideration whereof, it is now here ordered, adjudged, and decreed by this court, that the decree of the said Superior Court in this cause be, and the same is hereby, affirmed. ”

“ And the said Jos e likewise obligates himself, his heirs, executors, and assigns, at any time, that is to say, after the construction of the said mill in the terms and manner specified, to execute or cause to be executed, in favor of the Marquis, his heirs and assigns, the corresponding title and transfer of the two mentioned parcels of land, in conformity to the present or future laws and regulations of the Territory of Florida. ”