Land grant

“ Being at the date of the grant of July 2d, 1864,under the operation of an order of withdrawal by the Land Department, they were not in the category of lands embraced by that grant of 'public lands.' When the withdrawal order ceased to be in force the lands so withdrawn did not pass under the later grant, but became a part of the public domain, subject to be disposed of under the general land laws, and not to be claimed under any railroad land grant. ”

“ Provided the quantity of land granted and sold to any one person shall not exceed one thousand acres, and that such person do live on and cultivate a part of the said land twelve months, before he shall be entitled to a grant for the same. ”

“ Resembling its larger prototype, the London Company, the Berkeley Hundred group had a governor and council. The adventurers were granted 100 acres of land for each share of stock with the promise of an equal amount when the first grant was settled; likewise they were promised fifty acres without quitrent for every person transported at their expense who remained for three years or died within this period. For promoting both a church and school, the adventurers were also granted 1,500 acres. ”

“ Taking the above unity as a basis, and observing the distinction which must be made between grazing land, or that which is proper for raising stock, and farming land, without the facility of irrigation, this law grants to the contractor or contractors for the establishment of a new settlement, for each hundred families which he may introduce and establish in the state, five sitios of grazing land, and five labors at least, the one-half of which shall be without the facility of irrigation ”

“ Beginning in 1690 land patents in the Northern Neck were entered separately and the grant books that have survived give a good account of the land policy under the proprietors. Philip Ludwell served as agent from 1690 to 1693 and began an orderly handling of the proprietor's interest at the land office in Westmoreland. Throughout his term as agent he used a form for land grants in establishing his authority which reviewed a part of the checkered history of the Northern Neck. ”

“ The consequence has been, that large grants of land have fallen into the hands of those who have never lived upon them, or spent anything upon their improvement, beyond a fictitious amount which they were required to specify to the Government before they could obtain possession of their deeds of grant. ”

“ This articel makes plain the meaning of article three of the grant, and shows that that means simply that, in consideration of the setting apart of this large tract of land, the petitioners agree to introduce and settle on that land two hundred foreign families. Articles 12 and 13 together provide what shall be given to the empresario who introduces eight hundred families, and receives more than eleven square leagues of land. ”

“ In answer to the question, Mr Chief Justice Marshall, in delivering the opinion of the court, said, 'In the nature of the thing, we perceive no reason why the grant should not be good for land which it might lawfully pass, and void as to that part of the tract, for the granting of which the office had not been opened. It is every day's practice to make grants for lands, which have, in fact, been granted to others. ”

“ Congress, therefore, adopted the policy of keeping the public lands open to occupation and pre-emption, and appropriation to public uses, notwithstanding any grant it might make, until the lands granted were ascertained, and providing that if any sections settled upon or reserved were then found to fall within the limits of the grant, other land in their place should be selected. Thus settlements on the public lands were encouraged without the aid intended for the construction of the roads being thereby impaired. ”

“ The line or boundary of the overflow that renders the land unfit for regular cultivation may be adopted as that which regulates the grant.' The lists were to be made out on forms prescribed for that purpose, and transmitted to the department, the lands selected reserved from sale, and the selections, when approved by the secretary of the interior, were directed to be entered by the register as granted to the state. ”

“ Under the bill, as amended by my friend from Minnesota, nine tenths of the land is open to actual settlers at $2.50 per acre; the remaining one tenth is pine-timbered land, that is not fit for settlement, and never will be settled upon; but the timber will be cut off. I admit that it is the most valuable portion of the grant, for most of the grant is not valuable. It is quite valueless; and if you put in this amendment of the gentleman from Indiana, you may as well just kill the bill, for no man and no company will take the grant and build the road. ”

“ Taking into consideration the benefit and utility that will redound to the province, from a machine for sawing lumber, which the party proposes to construct in the place which he points out, and also paying attention to the services and other matters which he sets forth, let there be granted to him the five miles square of land which he solicits, without injury to a better right; and in order to prove this grant, let there be delivered to him from the secretary's office, the necessary certified copy. ”

“ But, strange to say, money will not be considered as "capital;" for otherwise, a number of settlers going up in succession with the same bag of sovereigns, might take up half the land in the Colony.—When the claimant has ascertained the number of acres to which he is entitled, he may select his grant in any district which may be opened for location, wherever the land be not reserved by Government or taken up by prior applicants. ”

“ Provided, That this shall not be construed to revive any land grant already expired, nor to create any new rights of any kind except to provide for issuing patents for lands to which the state is already entitled.' 18 Stat. ”

“ The quantity of land in market will amply supply the present demand. The claim of the settler under the homestead or the preemption laws is not, however, limited to lands subject to sale at private entry. Any unappropriated surveyed public land may, to a limited amount, be acquired under the former laws if the party entitled to enter under them will comply with the requirements they prescribe in regard to the residence and cultivation. The actual settler's preference right of purchase is even broader, and extends to lands which were unsurveyed at the time of his settlement. ”

“ The grants by the United States of land to aid in the construction of reilroads, in relation to which we have had many cases before us, are in many particulars analogous to the grant by the swamp-land act. ”

“ Good faith requires us to give full effect to existing grants. The time-honored and beneficent policy of setting apart certain sections of public land for educational purposes in the new States should be continued. When ample provision shall have been made for these objects, I submit as a question worthy of serious consideration whether the residue of our national domain should not be wholly disposed of under the provisions of the homestead and preemption laws. ”

“ Under these provisions of "the greate charter," it is evident that not only was the headright grant of fifty acres per person open to shareholders who brought settlers to the colony, but also to anyone who had migrated to the colony at his own expense or who had financed the expedition of other persons. Individuals paying their own transportation were entitled to fifty acres for themselves and for every member of the family, providing they fulfilled the residence requirement of three years. ”

“ As a rule I am opposed to further donations of public lands for internal improvements owned and controlled by private corporations, but in this instance I would make an exception. Between the Missouri River and the Rocky Mountains there is an arid belt of public land from 300 to 500 miles in width, perfectly valueless for the occupation of man, for the want of sufficient rain to secure the growth of any product. ”

“ Every grant of land will be duly described and registered before delivery, and, by the terms of the grant, no transfer or alienation will be legal until the same shall be registered. The registered owner of every grant or portion of land will be the legal owner, and thus certainty and security will be afforded to land-holders, as well as to persons advancing money on such security. Land which may at any time be occupied without a grant and proper registrations, will be taken as belonging to the Crown. ”

“ As we must refer to the terms of the main grant to the Union Pacific Railroad Company to determine the nature of like grants of land made in the acts of 1862 and 1864 to aid in the construction of the branch lines, we see no escape from the conclusion that the construction given to the grant of lands within place limits, made in aid of the main line, must be adopted as to the grants of place lands made in aid of branch roads ”

“ In attempting to make a grant described by rivers of whose courses and location they were ignorant, by given distances which could not be made to conform to the natural objects, making a grant of over seven millions of acres of land by specific boundaries of which they knew nothing, they made a total failure, and gave no description by which any surveyor could, without the aid of a lively imagination, make any location. ”

“ In all cases where forest reserves within areas covered by land grants appear to be essential to the prosperity of settlers, miners, or others, the Government lands within such proposed forest reserves will, as in the recent past, be withdrawn from sale or entry pending the completion of such negotiations with the owners of the land grants as will prevent the creation of so-called scrip. ”

“ Land purchase grants– (1) In general– Using funds provided under subsection (e) (1) , the Secretary shall make available land purchase grants to States for the purchase of eligible land in accordance with this subsection. (2) Implementation– (A) Amount– A land purchase grant shall be in an amount not to exceed the lesser of— (i) 50 percent of the total purchase price per acre of the eligible land; or (ii) (I) in the case of eligible land that was used to produce crops or hay, $400 per acre; and (II) in the case of eligible land that was pasture or grazing land, $200 per acre. ”

“ Quantity of public land already alienated.By official returns which accompany this Report, it appears that, out of about 17,000,000 of acres comprised within the surveyed districts of Upper Canada, less than 1,600,000 are yet unappropriated, and this amount includes 450,000 acres the reserve for roads, leaving less than 1,200,000 acres open to grant; and of this remnant, 500,000 acres are required to satisfy claims for grants founded on pledges by the Government. ”

“ Have any parcels of land been seized for the King's use, for want of planting or failure to pay quit-rents?
Small parcels of land are granted away every court for not being planted or seated according to law, but no land has at any time been seized to the King's use for not paying of quit-rents.
Are negro servants included in the persons who, if imported, make "rights" to grant of land. ”

“ But there are conditions attached to the sale or granting of Crown lands. In the first place, these lands can be acquired only by a male settler over eighteen, or the mother of a family who has residing with her at least one child under eighteen. The settler must live for three years on the homestead, and within this time must clear and cultivate about 10 per cent. of the land, and build a small habitable house. The size of the grant or farm lot is generally one hundred and sixty acres ”

“ Homesteads.—Every head of a family, widow, single man or woman of the age of twenty-one years, who is a citizen of the United States, or who has declared his or her intention of becoming so, can enter upon 80 acres of government land within the limits of a railroad grant, or 160 acres outside said limits; and after a continuous residence upon it and cultivation for five years, an absolute title to the land will be given by the United States government, at a total cost of about $9 on 80 acres, or $18 on 160 acres. ”

“ The law exempted orphans from the above provision and permitted them a five-year period after coming of age. A later enactment in 1657⁄58 repeated the provision on orphans and added to the exemption married women and persons of unsound mind. A second provision designed to prevent quarrels among neighbors required a person holding patent to land adjacent to a proposed grant to show the boundaries of his property within twelve months; otherwise the latest grant as surveyed would be valid and would take precedence over the old patent. ”

“ In case land already granted in individual titles shall be required for the purpose of any location, the owners will receive such compensation either in other land or in money as the Volksraad shall determine. After the boundaries of any location have been fixed, no fresh grant of land within such location will be made, nor will the boundaries be altered without the consent of the Location Commission. ”

“ By subsequent provisions of the act and the amendatory act of 1864, three grants were made to the company thus created: a grant of a right of way over the public lands of the United States for the road and telegraph line; a grant of ten alternate sections of land on each side of the road, to aid in its construction and that of the telegraph line ”

“ The projects for new settlements, in which one or more persons offer to bring at their expense one hundred or more families, shall be presented to the government, and if found conformable with this law they will be admitted ”

“ The grant was not of lands in piece. Selections were to be made by the state with the approval of the Secretary of the Interior, from unappropriated public lands, in such manner as the Legislature should provide. ”