-6 r·mr>saA1.· asporzrma, vol. 38. ,
lice. A portien'of‘these’lands was certified over to the state `by the
land department at Washington, approved bythe secretaryof the inte-
rior on November 15, 1871, and the remainder on March 24, 1873, and
they were afterwards patented to the purchasers by the state.
The lands in controversy situate in said township 2, range 1, were
selected in advance of any survey in the field by the United States sur}
veyor general, upon surveys made by the county surveyors of the state,
» between July 28, 1862, and July 20, 1863. Certificates of sale were is-
sued to purchasers by the state for a part between March 2, 1863, and
January 25, 1864, and for the remainder, between February 20, and O
March 14, 1865. These selectionslwere entered by the register of the
land-ofhce on June 12, 1865. _ A part was certified over to the state
by the secretary of the interior on September 8,1870, and the reston
_ March 11, 1871. These lands were also afterwards patented to the pur-
chasers by the state. The listings over to thelstate were all after the
_ Hnal approval of the two square league survey of thelRancho Las Pocitas,
which was on June 6, 1871; also after the filing of the map of general
route of the road by the railroad company in December, 1864, and
the withdrawal by the secretary of the interior in January, 1865; as
well as after the tiling of the map of the definite location of the Western
—Pacitic`Railroad Company, on February 1, 1870. But the surveys and
selections and issue of certificates of purchaseby the state were before
the said dates of June 6, 1871, and Februaryl, 1870. The Western
Pacihc Railroad was completed in accordance with the terms of the
several acts of congress relating to the subject, on or before December
29, 1869, and the company thereby became entitled to the lands granted.
A contest thereupon immediately arose before the department of the
interior, between the railroad company and the settlers who settled sub4
sequently to the grants on the odd sections, as to what lands were in-
cluded by the grant, and this was supposed to depend upon the exte· ’
V rior boundaries of the Las Pooitas grant. This matter was earnestly liti¥
gated before the department, atest case, (Arthur St. Clair v. The Western.
Pacific Railroad Company,) having beenvmade by stipulation with the
settlers, until January, 1874, when it was decided in favor of the rail-
road, company. Soon thereafter, on May 12, 1874, the land agent of
the company presented a list of lands for which the company claimed
patents, including the lands in controversy, when it was discovered that
the latter had been listed over to the state by mistake, upon the state se-
lections hereinbefore referred to, as indemnity lands for losses of sections
16 and 36 granted for school purposes, and that they were claimed by
purchasers from the state. The claim of the company for patents to
these lands was vigorously prosecuted by the company, with varying re-
sults; until it was finally determined by the secretary of the interior,
upon petition for reconsideration by the company,,iiled April 22, 1880,
that the company was entitled to the lands; but hedeclined to compli-
cate matters by issuing patents until the- question of right should be
settled by thecourts. Thereupon, and for the purpose of having the
questionauthoritatively adjudicated, upon his request the bill in this